Three people were killed and 44 others injured by Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese government said, as residents of villages near the border defied orders by Israel’s military not to return to their homes.

Israeli forces killed 15 people and wounded 80 others Sunday when displaced residents of southern Lebanon defied Israel's decision not to withdraw from border villages and tried to return home.

Israeli troops opened fire in south Lebanon on Sunday, killing 10 residents and a Lebanese soldier, health officials said as hundreds of people tried to return to their homes on the deadline for Israel to withdraw.