On Saturday, the Israeli army launched more than 16 various attacks targeting towns and villages in southern Lebanon, killing 8 people and wounding at least 7 others, according to a preliminary toll from the Lebanese Health Department.
According to Lebanese sources, the victims were distributed between a raid on the town of "Ain Baal" in the district of Tyre, which led to the death of a woman and the injury of 3 other women, and attacks on the district of Nabatieh that resulted in the death of two citizens and the injury of others, including the mayor of Shawkin, "Hussein Ali Ahmed". A raid on a house in the town of "Louwaiza" also killed 3 people, and two others were killed as a result of targeting a car on the "Kafr Jal-Nabatieh" road.
Widespread destruction and evacuation warnings
The Israeli airstrikes caused extensive property damage, destroying a number of residential buildings in the town of Shawkin and severely damaging an entire residential neighbourhood.
The Israeli shelling included the towns of "Zuter Al-Sharqiyah", "Burj Qalawiya" and "Majdal Zone", in addition to heavy machine gun fire towards the vicinity of "Ramiya" and "Al-Quzah", and artillery shelling on the outskirts of "Furon" and "Al-Ghandouriya".
In an escalatory step, the Israeli occupation army warned the residents of 9 southern towns to evacuate their homes immediately, in preparation for targeting what it described as Hezbollah-affiliated sites.
Israeli acknowledgement of casualties
For its part, Hezbollah announced the implementation of 10 attacks targeting Israeli targets, including 7 concentrations of soldiers and a military vehicle in the town of "Bayada", a "Hummer" vehicle in the town of "Taybeh", and a "Merkava" tank in the town of "Rashaf".
In an official statement, the Israeli army acknowledged that two military personnel were wounded in southern Lebanon following a booby-trapped drone attack.
The drones are a major concern for Tel Aviv, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling them the "main threat" and calling on the army to confront them.
Truce breaches and worsening displacement crisis
This escalation comes at a time when the country is witnessing a truce that began on April 17 and was extended until May 17 , but Israel continues to violate it daily.
Since the start of the aggression on March 2, Israeli attacks have left thousands dead and wounded, and led to the displacement of more than 1.6 million people, equivalent to about 20% of Lebanon's population, according to the latest official data.