ALBAWABA- At least 10 Lebanese civilians, including three civil defense rescue workers, were killed in Israeli air strikes on southern Lebanon on Tuesday, as tensions continue to test a fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire that took effect on 16 April.
Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that an Israeli air raid destroyed a four-storey residential building in the village of Jabchit in the Nabatieh district late Tuesday. The strike killed Mohammad Jawad Bahja and his wife Lotfiya, along with Amani Jaber and her two daughters. Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health said at least 13 others were injured in the attack.
In a separate strike in the town of Majdal Zoun in the Tyre district, two successive Israeli airstrikes targeted a building, killing five people. Among the dead were three Lebanese civil defence rescue workers, who had arrived to assist victims of the first strike.
The Lebanese army said two soldiers were also wounded when an Israeli strike hit a patrol accompanying rescuers and civilian equipment during an evacuation and rescue operation.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned the targeting of rescue workers as a “war crime” and a clear violation of international humanitarian law. He said Beirut would raise the issue before international bodies and press Israel to stop what he described as repeated ceasefire violations.
Hezbollah accused Israel of systematic breaches of the truce, while Israel said its operations were aimed at destroying Hezbollah infrastructure and in response to alleged militant activity.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed that military operations in Lebanon would continue until the Lebanese government takes effective steps to neutralise the Hezbollah threat.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also defended the strikes as part of efforts to enforce security arrangements under the U.S.-Lebanese framework.
Local media reported that a massive explosion in southern Lebanon on Tuesday caused tremors that were felt in northern Israel, further raising fears of wider escalation.
The ceasefire, announced after weeks of heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, has come under repeated strain from violations on both sides. Lebanese authorities have documented multiple Israeli strikes since mid-April, while Israel accuses Hezbollah of continuing attacks.
