Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 11 people and wounded 19 on Saturday, marking the deadliest toll since a ceasefire agreement in June brought a lull in cross-border hostilities between Israel and Lebanon.
Early morning attacks struck the villages of Ansar and Deir ez-Zahrani in the Nabatieh district. In Ansar, Israeli warplanes bombed a home on the outskirts of the village, killing seven people, including three children and two women, and wounding two others. The strike flattened the building, and rescue services worked at the site to search for survivors and locate bodies.
Hours later, another airstrike hit a home in Deir ez-Zahrani, killing four people and wounding 17. The strike covered the streets in rubble and smoke. An Israeli drone also targeted a location in the area, according to reports.
The Israeli military confirmed on social media that it had carried out airstrikes in the area. The strikes also targeted Ali al-Taher, a strategic hill on the outskirts of Nabatieh al Fauqa that the Israeli military described as an important Hezbollah stronghold. Earlier strikes on Friday had targeted the Ali al-Taher Ridge, producing visible smoke plumes.
The attacks represent a resumption of Israeli military operations in the region after the June ceasefire, which was mediated by the United States. The agreement stipulated that Israeli troops would remain in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and the Lebanese army assumes control of the region. Hezbollah, the Shiite party-militia backed by Iran, has rejected these conditions.
Rescue teams continued to search through rubble and transport the dead and wounded to hospitals in Nabatieh following the Saturday morning strikes. The Lebanese Ministry of Health confirmed the casualty figures from both incidents.
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