By Laila Bassam, Tom Perry, Maya Gebeily BEIRUT (Reuters) -With the bodies of its fighters still strewn on the battlefield, Hezbollah must bury its dead and provide succour to its supporters who bore the brunt of Israel's offensive,

With the bodies of its fighters still strewn on the battlefield, Hezbollah must bury its dead and provide succour to its supporters who bore the brunt of Israel's offensive, as the first steps on a long and costly road to recovery,

Israel will use “forceful” action to prevent any Hezbollah fighters returning to south Lebanon border villages following the ceasefire deal, its defence minister has warned.

A cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah brokered by the U.S. and France took effect in Lebanon early Wednesday, raising hopes of ending more than a year of cross-border strikes and a full-scale war that has killed thousands.

Major stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Thursday following Israel's agreement to a ceasefire deal with Lebanon's Hezbollah group under a deal brokered by the U.S. and France.