Mahasen Faqih and her husband returned this week to their village in southern Lebanon, digging through the debris of their home in search of their belongings, as part of the U.S.-brokered "pilot zones" agreement in which Israel agreed to withdraw in exchange for the disarmament of Hezbollah.

The couple fled north shortly after the start of the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, in early March. Now, their home in Zawtar al-Gharbieh — one of three zones where Israel agreed to turn over control to the Lebanese army — is among homes so damaged that they're unlivable. But Faqih said they've vowed to stay, settling inside the large grocery shop that they own in the village as they wait to have their home demolished and rebuilt.

Washington has relayed to Lebanon a “firm, strongly worded and dangerous” message saying that there will be a “hefty price” to pay if Hezbollah attacks Israel in the event of a new U.S. war on Iran, the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper said.

President Joseph Aoun has asked U.S. President Donald Trump to pressure Israel to move to a second phase of the "pilot zones" scheme that would encompass a bigger number of occupied villages, sources close to the Baabda Palace said.

The joint coordination mechanism between the United States, Lebanon and Israel has been informed that the Lebanese Army, during its operations in one of the pilot phase areas, had discovered a Hezbollah weapons cache, Israeli media reports said.

The Israeli army struck Tuesday a residential building in the southern town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa along the Israeli-declared Yellow Line.

Forces also detonated overnight into Tuesday houses in Adshit, Markaba, Deir Seryan, Qseir, Majdalzoun, al-Mansouri and Bint Jbeil.

The U.S. State Department confirmed Monday that the next round of talks between Israel and Lebanon will be held in Rome on August 4 through 6, as Israel prepares to withdraw from two "pilot zones" in southern Lebanon.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani first announced the next round of U.S.-mediated talks last week, with a State Department official detailing the talks to AFP on the condition of anonymity.

The German government has pledged tougher security laws following a deadly vehicle and machete attack blamed on a known jihadist militant near Berlin's Pride parade.

The attacker on Saturday ploughed a rented minivan into a crowd before slashing away at people with a machete, killing a 65-year-old Polish woman and wounding 29 others near the site of the LGBTQ community event.

The United Nations' human rights chief has said that Israel must end its occupation of large areas of southern Lebanon and halt the demolition of homes, days before Lebanese and Israeli officials are set to hold another round of direct talks.

Volker Türk spoke to The Associated Press as he wrapped up a visit to Lebanon, his second in just over a year. He met Monday with government officials, civil society representatives and Lebanese people displaced by the war.

President Joseph Aoun on Monday told U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk that Israel's continued destruction of homes and bulldozing of villages in the south constitutes “a direct violation of human rights and a blatant breach of international laws and norms, necessitating international action to put an end to it.”

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri told pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper, in remarks published Monday, that "the only acceptable path" is securing a ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.

"What we wanted yesterday, today, and tomorrow is securing a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from occupied Lebanese territory," Berri said, adding that he still rejects the framework agreement and any direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.