Lebanese health officials reported that Israeli airstrikes across southern Lebanon on Tuesday resulted in the deaths of at least 19 people, among them four women and three children, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The deadly attacks continue the pattern of near-daily violence from both sides that has persisted even with a fragile, U.S.-mediated ceasefire currently in effect for the Israel-Hezbollah conflict.
Israeli military officials did not provide immediate comment regarding the casualties or specific incidents, though they confirmed targeting more than 25 Hezbollah infrastructure locations in southern Lebanon between Monday afternoon and Tuesday afternoon.
The current round of Israel-Hezbollah fighting commenced on March 2 when the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group launched rockets at Israel, occurring two days following attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran.
Lebanese government officials reported that a single attack on the village of Deir Qanoun al Nahr in the coastal Tyre province resulted in 10 fatalities, including three children and three women. Three additional people sustained injuries, including one child.
While the ministry offered no additional details regarding the attack, the state-run National News Agency reported that it demolished a house, trapping several people beneath the debris. Recovery teams retrieved their bodies later that day.
The ministry also documented another airstrike on the southern city of Nabatieh that claimed four lives and injured 10 others, including two women. A third attack in the neighboring village of Kfar Sir resulted in five deaths, including one woman.
These recent fatalities occurred one day after the death toll in the current fighting between Israel and Hezbollah exceeded 3,000, and two days following the extension of the U.S.-brokered truce for an additional 45 days. The ceasefire has been active since April 17.
Israel has conducted an invasion of southern Lebanon and launched bombardments of Beirut, the capital, along with other regions, stating its focus on Hezbollah infrastructure. Hezbollah, functioning as both a militant organization and influential political entity in Lebanon, has maintained resistance to disarmament pressure, including from Lebanon’s own government.
The conflict has forced more than a million Lebanese people from their homes, with some taking shelter in tents positioned along roadways and near the Mediterranean Sea in Beirut.
Meanwhile, Israel has faced challenges in stopping persistent Hezbollah drone strikes aimed at its forces operating on Lebanese territory and northern Israeli border communities.
Israeli military officials confirmed that one soldier died on Tuesday during combat operations in southern Lebanon, bringing the total number of Israeli military deaths to 21 since the current conflict began.
