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Double strike on rescuers
Lebanon is entering a new deadly phase as Israeli raids repeatedly target rescuers and civil defense teams after earlier bombardments, a sequence Lebanese authorities and human rights organizations describe as a "double strike." The mechanism described by Africtelegraph involves a first missile hitting a vehicle, residence, or facility affiliated with the resistance, followed minutes later by a second strike hitting the perimeter of the intervention as teams from the Lebanese Red Cross, Civil Defense, or health facilities linked to Hezbollah and the Amal movement arrive.
“Lebanon is entering a new deadly phase marked by the proliferation of Israeli attacks against rescuers and civil defense teams”
Africtelegraph says the result is mechanical: "the initial victims are joined by the rescuers who came to extract them from the rubble." It adds that several ambulance workers have been killed while trying to recover bodies in localities of the Nabatieh district, Tyre or Bint Jbeil, and that losses among first responders have mounted by the dozens since the open escalation with Israel.
In southern Lebanon, Al-Manar TV Lebanon reported that Israeli occupation forces targeted civil defense teams extinguishing a fire and searching for casualties in Nabatieh al-Fawqa.
Nabatieh al-Fouqa deaths
In Nabatieh al-Fouqa, El-Nashra said the Civil Defense in South Lebanon told Al Jazeera that "a martyr and two injured were reported after Israeli forces opened fire on civilians in Nabatieh al-Fouqa." El-Nashra also said the Israeli army opened fire on vehicles belonging to a team from the Islamic Health Authority while extinguishing the fire and searching for injuries in Nabatieh al-Fouqa.
Kurdistan24 reported a separate Civil Defense toll for Israeli attacks targeting the Nabatieh area, saying the airstrikes and assaults left 16 people dead and 12 others wounded, with rescue and ambulance teams working at the targeted sites.
RTL.fr likewise said that despite the previous day's announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, Israeli strikes in the Nabatieh region killed at least 16 people on Saturday, June 20, and that Civil Defense teams transported 16 dead and 12 injured to hospitals.
RTL.fr quoted Hassan Fadlallah saying that Hezbollah has "the full right to respond to Israeli attacks," framing the issue as a ceasefire that the enemy must fully and totally respect.
Ceasefire strain and stakes
The stakes described across the sources include both humanitarian access and the durability of ceasefire arrangements, as Africtelegraph says volunteers are now trained in cautious-approach protocols, waiting several minutes before intervening at a site that has just been struck.
“The Civil Defense in South Lebanon told Al Jazeera that a martyr and two injured were reported after Israeli forces opened fire on civilians in Nabatieh al-Fouqa”
Africtelegraph links the practice to international-law concerns, stating that "Attacks against medical personnel and rescuers constitute, under international humanitarian law, grave violations," and it says the International Committee of the Red Cross and UN rapporteurs have reminded that identified rescuers enjoy absolute protection.
In parallel, L'Orient-Le Jour put the toll from Israeli attacks in Lebanon at 3,593 dead and 10,10 90 wounded since March 2, citing the Lebanese Health Public Ministry for deaths and injuries between March 2 and June 6.
L'Orient-Le Jour also reported that Hezbollah claimed multiple attacks in Lebanon's south and the interception of an Israeli drone, including a volley of rockets at 12:20 toward vehicles and soldiers near the El Ichraq school in Bint Jbeil and a suicide drone attack at 17:20 against Israeli soldiers positioned near the Khiam detention center.
RTL.fr said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told that Israeli troops would stay in southern Lebanon "as long as necessary," while the Lebanese state news agency ANI reported the Civil Defense toll in Nabatieh despite the ceasefire announcement.
