Israeli airstrikes targeted villages in southern Lebanon on Saturday, killing at least 11 people including three children. The attacks occurred in the villages of Ansar and Deir El Zahrani, according to reports from Lebanese health authorities. The Lebanese government said that 11 people were killed in total, including three children, during the strikes.
First responders searched through the rubble in Ansar for survivors following the strike, according to lbc.co.uk. Hezbollah condemned the attacks as an ‘aggressive escalation’ and described them as a ‘brutal massacre’ committed by Israel against civilians.
The group also claimed that Israeli forces responded by striking Hezbollah terror headquarters which ordered the attack. The conflict comes amid a broader agreement that would leave Israeli troops in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and the Lebanese army takes control of the area.
Hezbollah has rejected those terms as surrender, according to the statement.
According to Lebanese state media, a strike on Saturday killed seven people in the southern region, including three children and two women. The national news agency reported that Israeli warplanes struck a home on the outskirts of Ansar village, killing seven and injuring three, according to a report from jang.com.pk.
This week, Human Rights Watch urged the United Nations to maintain an international peacekeeping force in Lebanon after its current mandate ends this year.
IMAGE: Israeli Air Force (IAF) F-35I Adir