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Lebanon: Seven killed in Israeli strike in the south
🇬🇷 Greece /Conflict & Security

Lebanon: Seven killed in Israeli strike in the south

From Ta Nea · () Greek

Translated from Greek, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Ongoing story
  • An Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon killed seven people and injured three others early Saturday.
  • The strike hit a house in the village of Ansar, marking one of the deadliest attacks in Lebanon in weeks.
  • Hezbollah's leader rejected a US-mediated peace framework, calling it an Israeli directive.

Seven people were killed and three others injured in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a house in the southern Lebanese village of Ansar early Saturday. The strike, reported by Lebanon's state news agency, is among the deadliest attacks in the country in recent weeks. This incident occurs after Lebanon agreed to a US-mediated peace framework with Israel, a deal that stipulates Israeli troops would remain in occupied southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and the Lebanese army takes control.

Hezbollah's leader, in a speech on Friday, rejected the terms of the peace framework, characterizing it as a surrender and an "Israeli directive written in Israeli ink." The group's stance highlights the ongoing tensions and the deep divisions over the proposed resolution. The Israeli military stated it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in what it described as a security zone in southern Lebanon overnight, responding to actions against its soldiers.

The Israeli army occupied a strip of land in southern Lebanon earlier this year during a conflict with Hezbollah, which was triggered when the group fired rockets into Israel two days after the start of the US-Israel war against Iran. Israel maintains its forces will remain there to protect northern Israel from further attacks. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz visited southern Lebanon on Thursday, reiterating that Israel would not withdraw from controlled areas until Hezbollah is disarmed.

A State Department official commented that a permanent Israeli military presence in the region is inconsistent with the commitments outlined in the agreement with the Lebanese government. Since the new round of hostilities began on March 2, at least 4,300 people have been killed in Lebanon. The recent airstrike underscores the volatile security situation and the challenges in achieving lasting peace in the region.

The framework agreement... is an Israeli directive written in Israeli ink upon which the Lebanese authorities have signed.

— Hezbollah leaderDescribing the US-mediated peace framework with Israel.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Ta Nea in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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