Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Tuesday killed at least 19 people, including four women and three children, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. The attacks represent the latest in near-daily exchanges between both sides that have continued despite a fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict.
Details of the Strikes
The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the casualties or specific incidents, but reported that between Monday afternoon and Tuesday afternoon, it had struck more than 25 Hezbollah infrastructure sites in southern Lebanon.
In Beirut, the government confirmed that a single strike on the village of Deir Qanoun al Nahr in the coastal Tyre province killed 10 people, including three children and three women. Three others were wounded, including a child. The ministry provided no further details about the strike, but the state-run National News Agency reported that the attack destroyed a house, leaving several people trapped under rubble. Their bodies were recovered later in the day.
Another airstrike on the southern city of Nabatieh killed four people and wounded 10 others, including two women. A third strike in the nearby village of Kfar Sir killed five people, including one woman.
Context of the Conflict
The latest deaths came a day after the death toll in the current round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah surpassed 3,000. This occurred two days after the U.S.-brokered truce, in place since April 17, was extended for 45 days. Israel has since invaded southern Lebanon and bombarded the capital, Beirut, and other areas, claiming it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure. Hezbollah, both a militant group and a powerful political organization in Lebanon, has resisted pressure to disarm, including from the Lebanese government.
More than a million people have been displaced in Lebanon by the fighting, with some sheltering in tents along roads and the Mediterranean Sea in Beirut. Meanwhile, Israel has struggled to halt frequent Hezbollah drone attacks targeting its troops on Lebanese soil and northern Israeli border towns.
Israel's military reported that one of its soldiers was killed on Tuesday in battle in southern Lebanon, raising the Israeli troop death toll to 21 since the latest conflict began.
