Officials say 9 killed in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed nine people, including three children, on Saturday, Lebanese authorities said, in the deadliest attacks since agreements in June eased hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that seven people, including three children and two women, were killed in a strike on a home near Ansar. Two others were killed and nine wounded in a separate strike on Deir al-Zahrani, with the casualty toll considered provisional.
Israel said that its military targeted what it described as Hezbollah infrastructure in Nabatiyah and Ansar, saying the strikes came in response to an action by the Iran-backed group against Israeli soldiers near the Ali al-Taher Ridge.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam rejected the Israeli justification, saying those killed in Ansar were not military targets and urging Israel to halt what he called an “extremely dangerous” escalation.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes also struck the Ali al-Taher Ridge and an area between Ansar and Zarariyeh.
The strikes come amid continued tensions despite U.S.-backed agreements reached in June aimed at reducing hostilities and establishing a framework for Hezbollah’s disarmament, an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the deployment of Lebanese forces.
Israel and Lebanon are expected to hold another round of U.S.-sponsored negotiations in Rome in September.
The violence has decreased significantly since the June agreements, but Lebanon continues to report Israeli strikes and demolitions in southern areas.