Ten Killed in Southern Lebanon as Israeli Strikes Target Hezbollah Amid Ceasefire Violations

Israeli air strikes killed at least 10 people in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon's state media. Overnight, six people were killed and seven others injured when a house was hit in Kfar Dounine, the state-run National News Agency reported. On Tuesday afternoon two paramedics from the state-run Lebanese Civil Defense emergency service died and a third was injured in an Israeli strike on Nabatieh.

The two paramedics killed in Nabatieh were identified as Hussein Jaber and Ahmad Noura. Lebanon's health ministry said they had been carrying out a rescue mission in response to an earlier attack that killed one person. A Syrian man was killed and his wife wounded when an Israeli drone struck a motorcycle on a road in the Tayr Debba area, the National News Agency added.

The Israeli military said it struck a suspect who was fleeing after an unsuccessful attempt to launch a surface-to-air missile toward one of its aircraft. It also reported that Hezbollah fighters launched explosive-laden drones toward Israeli troops operating in southern Lebanon without causing any casualties.

Hezbollah for its part said it targeted Israeli troops in Naqoura, Bayada and Houla in southern Lebanon with drones, as well as a soldier in Kibbutz Manara in northern Israel.

The Israeli military has intensified its strikes on southern Lebanon in recent days. It stated that it is targeting Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure. The military accused Hezbollah of violating the US-brokered ceasefire deal agreed by the Israeli and Lebanese governments in April.

Hezbollah has carried out rocket and drone attacks on communities in northern Israel and against Israeli troops occupying parts of southern Lebanon. Israeli and Lebanese officials are expected to meet again in Washington on Thursday to try to find a way to end the war. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun expressed sadness and regret at the killing of two Civil Defence members in Nabatieh.

He stated that the continued Israeli aggression hinders efforts to restore calm. Lebanon's health ministry said the targeting of the paramedics constitutes further evidence of the Israeli enemy's blatant violation of international humanitarian law and its full disregard for all international norms.

The health ministry reported that 108 emergency medical services and healthcare workers had been killed in Lebanon during the war.

It recorded more than 140 Israeli attacks on ambulances and medical facilities. At least 2,869 people have so far been killed in Lebanon, the ministry said.

Israeli authorities said 18 soldiers and four civilians have been killed in Israel over the same period. The conflict started on 2 March, two days after the US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran. BBC News reported that Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel after the joint attack on Iran, prompting Israeli widespread air strikes and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon.