Listen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated using AI-based technology. Pronunciation errors may occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve results. Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed at least nine people on Saturday, in some of the deadliest attacks since a precarious truce between Israel and Hezbollah took effect in June. Lebanon’s Health Ministry and state news agency said one of the airstrikes that targeted a house outside the village of Ansar killed seven people, including three children, and wounded two. The second, in the village of Deir al-Zahrani, killed two and wounded nine. Israel and the Lebanese government announced a “framework agreement” on June 26, setting out a plan for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon, in exchange for the disarmament of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group. It also envisions steps toward an eventual peace agreement between the two countries, which technically remain in a state of war nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment. Hezbollah has refused to hold direct talks and was not part of the deal. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam criticized Israel’s airstrikes in southern Lebanon, saying they intimidate “residents in their homes” and undermine efforts to stabilize the situation in the south. “The seven martyrs of the Israeli airstrike on the town of Ansar are not military infrastructure and the children and women killed were not military targets,” Salam said in comments published on (Mohammed Zaatari/The Associated Press) He added that it is the job of the Lebanese state to take care of any military infrastructure in the country. “Israel must stop this escalation,” Salam said. He added that the security of the Lebanese people and their right to life in their land “are not subject to negotiation or bargaining.” More than 4,000 people in the region have been killed so far by Israeli attacks. Heavy Israeli airstrikes early Saturday also hit the strategic Ali Taher Hill, which overlooks parts of the southern city of Nabatiyeh and the main roads leading to it, NNA reported. Despite the truce, the Israeli army has continued its almost daily attacks on the area, which is north of the Litani River and has been a de facto border in Lebanon, with large areas to the south under Israeli military control. The Israeli military said in a statement that it attacked Hezbollah infrastructure in the Ali Taher and Ansar areas in response to an action against Israeli soldiers in the area. The military added that it will not allow Hezbollah to harm Israeli civilians or soldiers “and will continue to operate to eliminate threats.” A Hezbollah official did not immediately respond when asked for comment on whether they carried out any attacks against Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. Rescuers search for victims in the rubble of a destroyed house that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Saturday. (Mohammed Zaatari/The Associated Press) Earlier this month, two Israeli soldiers were killed in an explosion in southern Lebanon, the first Israeli deaths since the truce. Hezbollah did not comment on the explosion. Lebanon and Israel have held seven rounds of talks; the most recent took place in Rome earlier this month. Iran-backed Hezbollah has refused to disarm and accuses the Lebanese government of making too many concessions without guaranteeing an Israeli withdrawal. The latest war between Israel and Hezbollah broke out on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets across the border two days after the United States and Israel launched their attacks on Iran. Since then, more than 4,000 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians. Some 40 soldiers and three civilians – including a military contractor – have been killed on the Israeli side.
