Israel Kills Two Rescuers In Nabatieh, Lebanon, As Paramedics Become Targets

In Nabatieh, in southern Lebanon, two rescuers were killed by an Israeli airstrike, and paramedics, doctors, and rescue teams became targets since the start of the war, which has claimed the lives of at least 52 medical personnel.

Less than twenty-four hours earlier, Ali Jaber, 22, and Joud Suleiman, 15, were still alive, and more than fifty people stood in a tight circle around their bodies wrapped in white shrouds.

ABC News

The scene in Nabatieh included rescuers in uniform directly off their ambulances, and Joud’s mother begged that her son’s face be revealed so she could see him one last time.

France Télévisions reported that a bombardment struck Nabatieh and that the rescue team set off immediately as the Israelis sometimes strike their target twice within minutes.

France Télévisions’ report quoted Mohamed Sleiman, head of the Nabatieh rescuers, saying, "The Israelis do not distinguish between medical staff, civilians or anything."

Israeli attacks on Lebanon continued despite a ceasefire, with three people killed in a strike on a car in the south of the country, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health.

The health ministry said that since the conflict began on March 2, 4,230 people have been killed in Lebanon and 12,179 others have been wounded, while Al Jazeera reported that the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah remains "fragile" as the Israeli army continues to target "anyone or anything in front-line villages".

Akhbar Al-Ghad

Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr said the message was that the Israeli army did not want people to approach the area, adding that there were drone strikes and stun grenades and that people were killed.

In Washington, senior Israeli and Lebanese officials met for a final day of talks, and Al Jazeera reported that a US State Department official told Reuters that Israel had taken a "concrete step" towards the proposal by pulling back from a part of a buffer zone in southern Lebanon.

Israel’s government spokesman David Mencer said Israel "will not withdraw our forces from southern Lebanon as long as Hezbollah remains a threat, is not disarmed and demilitarised," as Rubio praised progress in the talks.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said on Friday that the death toll from Israeli airstrikes since March 2 has risen to 3,111 people as of May 22, and it said two Israeli strikes on the south killed six medical workers in the last 24 hours.

The ministry described the strikes that killed six medical workers as violating international law, and it said an Israeli assault in the town of Hanawiyah in southern Lebanon killed four of the health authority's medics.

In Deir Qanoun al-Nahr, Reuters was able to confirm a video clip location after the ministry said an Israeli airstrike killed two rescuers from the Risalah Association, with the clip showing two men wearing yellow vests aiding a person by the roadside.

L’Orient Today reported that despite the fragile calm after the cease-fire brokered Saturday night between Hezbollah and Israel took effect, three people were killed in an Israeli strike in the Nabatieh district, after an Israeli drone targeted a car traveling between Zawtar and Mayfadoun.

L’Orient Today added that the Health Ministry announced 19 additional deaths had been recorded in the past 24 hours, and that the death toll since the resumption of the war on March 2 now stands at 4,230 killed and 12,179 wounded by Israeli attacks.