31 killed as Israeli strikes pound southern, eastern Lebanon despite ceasefire

BEIRUT: Dozens of people were killed Tuesday in heavy Israeli airstrikes across southern and eastern Lebanon, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered an escalation of military action against Hezbollah, further straining a fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

At least 31 people were killed in the latest attacks, including several children, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said. The strikes came as Iran accused the United States of violating a separate truce by carrying out strikes in southern Iran.

The Israeli military said it hit more than 100 sites in one of the heaviest nights of bombardment since the ceasefire began April 16.

That truce, meant to halt fighting between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, has been repeatedly violated by both sides, threatening to derail ongoing talks involving the U.S., Israel and Iran.

Israeli air and artillery strikes have continued daily, particularly in southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah has launched rockets and drones at communities in northern Israel and Israeli forces operating in parts of southern Lebanon, according to reports.

Local media said strikes targeted the Bekaa Valley village of Mashghara and Burj al-Shamali in southern Lebanon. Some explosions hit near Beaufort Castle, a nearly 900-year-old fortress recognized by UNESCO as “one of the best-preserved examples of medieval castles” in the region.

The Israeli military has expanded ground operations in southern Lebanon beyond a security zone but provided no details on the advance past the so-called Yellow Line.

That line, separate from the UN-demarcated Blue Line marking the frontier following Israel’s 2000 withdrawal, forms part of a proposed buffer zone extending 3 to 6 miles into southern Lebanon.

Israel’s military has ordered residents not to return to dozens of villages in the zone, where troops have been demolishing homes.

Hezbollah said Tuesday it targeted Israeli forces and tanks advancing toward the southern Lebanese town of Zawtar al-Sharqiya with explosive drones, rockets and artillery.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said the cumulative toll from Israel’s offensive since March 2, when Hezbollah fired projectiles into Israel in response to the start of the Iran war, had reached 3,213 dead and 9,737 wounded as of May 26.

The Israeli military said 10 of its soldiers have been killed since the April 16 ceasefire, six of them by Hezbollah’s explosive drones. The World Health Organization said at least 608 people in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli attacks since the truce.