Lebanon said that an Israeli strike in the southern region on Thursday resulted in one fatality, marking the latest assault despite a ceasefire with the militant organization Hezbollah.
Israel has persisted in conducting assaults on Lebanon, typically asserting that it is aiming at Hezbollah operatives or installations. However, a November truce was intended to conclude over a year of hostilities, which included two months of overt conflict with the Iran-backed organization.
The health ministry stated that an Israeli drone attack targeted a motorcycle on the Ain Baal-Bazuriyeh road, resulting in one fatality, in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon.
The National News Agency of Lebanon reported further Israeli strikes on Zrariyeh in the Sidon area of southern Lebanon and in the Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border, with no immediate information regarding deaths.
The Israeli army reported that it targeted Hezbollah’s “terror infrastructure at a location utilized for the production and storage of strategic weapons” in the Bekaa, as well as other Hezbollah infrastructure in Zrariyeh.
The operations ensued after a Tuesday attack south of Beirut that injured a Hezbollah member, as reported by a security source, and following Monday’s strikes in eastern Lebanon that resulted in five fatalities. Israel announced that it aimed at Hezbollah installations.
Amid significant US pressure and concerns over intensified Israeli assaults, the Lebanese government instructed the military last month to formulate a strategy for disarming the previously powerful Hezbollah, and last week announced that the army will commence the execution of this plan.
Thursday’s operations occurred during the visit of French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian to Lebanon for discussions with high-ranking officials, including President Joseph Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Hezbollah.
France participates in a group overseeing the truce, which also comprises the United States, Lebanon, Israel, and United Nations peacekeepers.
Aoun informed Le Drian that “any pressure from France or the United States on Israel to heed the international community’s call to cease hostilities against Lebanon will facilitate the implementation of the security plan proposed by the army and endorsed by the cabinet,” according to the presidency.
