Israeli Airstrikes Kill One in Nabatieh Despite Ceasefire, Netanyahu Says He Will Intensify Operations

Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed one person in the Nabatieh Governorate despite the ceasefire and the US-Iran memorandum of understanding, Anadolu Ajansı reported, saying Israeli combat aircraft targeted the town of Upper Nabatieh in the evening.

“The city of Nabatieh, in southern Lebanon, has once again been struck by an Israeli air operation that left at least two civilians dead”

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Anadolu Ajansı also said Israeli drones carried out four strikes in the afternoon against the Menzele neighborhood and the square of Upper Nabatieh, while the Lebanese Ministry of Health announced that one person had died and two others were injured.

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In parallel, the Lebanese National News Agency reported that Israeli planes carried out successive raids on eastern Lebanon in the evening, with eight strikes on Mashghara in the western Beqaa forming a fire belt around the town, France 24 said.

France 24 added that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would "intensify" its military operations in Lebanon with the aim of "crushing" Hezbollah, despite a ceasefire being in effect.

The same France 24 report said Israel continued strikes it said targeted Hezbollah and its facilities while its forces remained in occupation of villages and carried out destruction and demolition of homes and buildings in south Lebanon.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the new agreement negotiated by the United States with Beirut tells Iran and Hezbollah that they have "no role to play in Lebanon," and he described Israel’s freedom of action to counter threats weighing on Israeli soldiers in Lebanon.

Netanyahu said, "if you perceive a threat, act," and he added that under these directives "200 Hezbollah terrorists have been killed in the past two weeks," including incidents where soldiers spotted emerging threats.

Anadolu Ajansı

The Times of Israël also reported that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir denounced the agreement between Israel and Lebanon under U.S. auspices as 'a major error' and demanded Netanyahu present it to a cabinet vote.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said the agreement signed in Washington was 'null', an 'humiliation' and an abandonment of sovereignty, according to The Times of Israël.

The Times of Israël further said a security official speaking to Ynet warned that an attack on Israeli territory would not necessarily lead to an Israeli strike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, and that retaliation would be evaluated "on a case-by-case basis".

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that from March 2 to May 22 the death toll from Israeli airstrikes rose to 3,111 people, and it said two Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon killed six medical workers in the last 24 hours, according to Al Sharq | West Asian.

“One person has died in airstrikes carried out by the Israeli army in Nabatieh Governorate, southern Lebanon, despite the agreement signed with Lebanon, the ceasefire, and the US-Iran memorandum of understanding”

Anadolu Ajansı

Al Sharq reported that the ministry described the airstrikes that killed six healthcare workers as violating international law and expressed strong condemnation of the two attacks.

Al Sharq also said the ministry reported that an Israeli attack in the town of Hanawiyah killed four emergency medical responders from the Health Authority, and that a strike killed two medics from the Al-Risala Association in Deir Qanoun al-Nahr.

In the same period, Al Sharq said the Israeli army stated that forces of Brigade 551 spotted five Hezbollah members in advanced areas in southern Lebanon and directed the air force to target the area.

The Le Monde.fr report on Nabatieh added that rescuers described the deaths of volunteers as a "cold-blooded murder: a new Israeli crime," as it recounted how Joude Souleiman, 16, was killed by an Israeli drone strike.