The Israeli military has supposedly started to withdraw from some border villages late Monday as the Lebanese army moved in, hours before a deadline to implement a truce between Israel and Hezbollah, AFP reported, citing a Lebanese security official.

"Israeli forces are beginning to withdraw from border villages, including Mais al-Jabal and Blida, as the Lebanese army advances," the official told the news agency. The Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire took effect on November 27, after more than a year of fighting that has claimed thousands of lives. Under the agreement, Israel was to use the initial 60-day halt to the fighting to withdraw from Lebanon.

The period was then extended to February 18, meaning that the pullout deadline is now set to expire on Tuesday morning. However, the Israeli military said it would stay in "five strategic points" in southern Lebanon "temporarily" and withdraw the rest of its forces.