Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed 10 people, including six paramedics and a child, within 24 hours, Lebanon's health ministry reported on Friday. The attacks further strain a fragile US-brokered ceasefire that took effect last month. The ministry condemned the strikes as violations of international law.
Renewed Airstrikes and Evacuations
Further airstrikes were reported on Friday night into Saturday. An AFP correspondent in the southern city of Tyre heard two explosions as a building on the outskirts was struck, followed by another inside the city, sending plumes of smoke into the air. Earlier, officials used loudspeakers to urge residents to evacuate the area.
Israel's military issued evacuation warnings for two areas of Tyre and the village of Burj Rahal to the northeast, stating that troops were acting against Hezbollah. The state-run National News Agency reported five Israeli airstrikes shortly before midnight in the mountainous Nabi Sreij area near Brital, which had been spared from attacks since the ceasefire began.
Casualties and Response
According to the health ministry, an Israeli strike overnight Thursday into Friday in the southern town of Hanaway killed four paramedics from the Islamic Health Association. On Friday morning, another strike in Deir Qanoun En-Nahr in the Tyre province killed six people, including two medics and a Syrian child.
The Israeli military stated that in Hanaway, it struck Hezbollah infrastructure sites where militants were present. In Deir Qanoun En-Nahr, soldiers identified and struck two Hezbollah militants on motorcycles. The Al-Rissala Scouts Association, linked to the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement, was involved. The military said it was examining claims that uninvolved individuals were harmed and had ordered evacuations to mitigate civilian harm.
The Lebanese health ministry released a video from Deir Qanoun En-Nahr showing two men in yellow vests tending to someone on the roadside. As an ambulance approached, a flash and loud boom occurred, and the men fell to the ground. Reuters confirmed the location. The town was hit by an earlier airstrike this week that killed 14 people, the deadliest single strike since the ceasefire was announced.
Broader Impact
More than 3,100 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2, when Hezbollah fired at Israel, sparking a new war. The dead include 123 medics, 210 children, and nearly 300 women, according to health ministry statistics. International humanitarian law protects frontline responders, healthcare workers, and civilian infrastructure, including healthcare centers. Several hospitals in southern Lebanon have been damaged or put out of service by Israeli strikes, according to the World Health Organization.
