Lebanon Says Four Killed in Israeli Strikes, Including Two Women

Four people, including two women, were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. Twenty others, including several women and three children, were wounded, with the ministry describing the toll as provisional.

The deaths were reported in Nabatieh al-Fawqa and nearby Arab Salim. Israel's army said it was responding after Hezbollah fighters launched two drones toward Israeli soldiers operating inside Israel's self-declared security zone in southern Lebanon. The army called the drone launch a “blatant violation” but did not report any casualties among its troops.

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blatant violation

Shortly before the strikes, Israel's military issued its first evacuation notice in Lebanon in several weeks. It warned residents near a building in Arab Salim that it identified as a Hezbollah facility to leave ahead of an attack. It did not issue warnings for the other areas where strikes were reported.

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enemy warplanes launched a strike on another house, destroying it

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said Israeli warplanes struck another house after the warning, destroying it and killing the two women. It said the military later struck the home named in the evacuation notice. The agency also reported that a strike in Nabatieh al-Fawqa damaged part of the Ghandour hospital, which had been out of service for years.

Further strikes damaged a historical building and offices belonging to state finance and agriculture authorities in Nabatieh city, as well as nearby shops and cafes. The agency also reported a strike on a motorcycle. Lebanon says more than 4,300 people have been killed since Hezbollah drew the country into the wider Middle East war in March by attacking Israel in support of Iran. Israeli forces remain inside a self-declared security zone about 10 kilometers deep along the border, despite reduced violence since a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding in June and a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon later that month.

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carried out a strike on the home