Israeli airstrikes killed 16 people overnight in the Nabatieh region of southern Lebanon, state media reported Friday, despite a peace deal in the Middle East war that includes Lebanon.

Lebanon's National News Agency said "the enemy committed several massacres" with a series of airstrikes after midnight that targeted residential areas in several towns, including Harouf, where at least eight people were killed.

Lebanese authorities have arrested a citizen suspected of having imported parts used to manufacture Hezbollah drones, a judicial source told AFP on Thursday.

Hezbollah has been using fiber optic drones, which are resistant to jamming, in their fight against Israel since early March.

The head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, Mohammad Raad, said on Thursday that Israel's war in Lebanon had "failed" to eliminate the Iran-backed group.

Raad said in a statement that "the enemy's war aimed at crushing the resistance in Lebanon has failed and will not achieve its objectives".

Hezbollah said its fighters were engaged in fresh clashes with the Israeli military on Thursday, hours after Lebanese state media reported that Israeli strikes in the south killed three people.

The fighting came a day after the United States and Iran signed an agreement to end the Middle East war on all fronts, including in Lebanon.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underscored the importance of maintaining close ties with the United States on Thursday, saying Washington had stood by its ally during the Middle East war.

"The struggle is not yet over, and further challenges lie ahead. They require calm judgement, steadfast defense of Israel's security interests, and at the same time the preservation of our vital relationship with our American friends, who stood shoulder to shoulder with us in this fight -- a partnership we deeply appreciate," Netanyahu said at a function, according to a statement issued by his office.

The Israeli military said on Thursday it will continue operating in southern Lebanon and "remove threats" beyond its so-called security zone, after the U.S. and Iran signed an agreement to end the Middle East war, including in Lebanon.

The military published a map of its declared "security zone" -- which runs some 10 kilometers inside Lebanese territory.

Qatar, a key negotiator in the deal to end the war between the U.S. and Iran, said on Thursday the agreement served as a firm basis for further talks.

The Gulf state's foreign ministry said in a statement that the deal "represents a solid foundation for advancing to the next stage of negotiations between the American and Iranian parties", ahead of technical talks expected in Switzerland on Friday.

Israel's foreign minister said Thursday that he was severing all contact with the European Union's top diplomat Kaja Kallas over reported remarks in which she allegedly compared Israel to the apartheid regime that once ruled South Africa.

"Recently, it was published that during her visit to Mexico, she compared Israel to the racist apartheid regime that existed in South Africa," Gideon Saar wrote on X.

The Swiss foreign ministry confirmed Thursday that "initial negotiations" on implementing a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding on ending the Middle East war were planned to take place in Switzerland on Friday.

"Currently, the plan remains for the United States and Iran, along with the mediators Pakistan and Qatar and other involved countries, to meet tomorrow at the Burgenstock for initial negotiations on the implementation of the agreement," the ministry said, lifting a degree of uncertainty that had hung over the meeting at the luxury mountainside resort near Lucerne.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said Washington "did send a copy" of its accord with Iran to end the Middle East war, following reports of tensions with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Insisting he maintains a good relationship with Netanyahu, Trump reaffirmed his criticism at the G7 summit of Israel's campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying "they (Israel) could do a much better job".