At least 60 people have died in Israeli attacks on Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley, according to the Lebanese health ministry. Among those killed were two children, with strikes hitting 16 areas in the Baalbek region.
The ministry reported that 58 others were wounded, noting that rescue efforts are ongoing in the valley, a known Hezbollah stronghold. The Israeli military has not yet issued a comment.
In recent weeks, Israel has conducted thousands of airstrikes across Lebanon, targeting what it claims are Hezbollah operatives, infrastructure, and weaponry.
Baalbek governor Bachie Khodr described the attacks as the “most violent” seen in the area since the conflict with Hezbollah escalated last month.
Unverified videos circulating on social media showed significant damage to buildings and raging fires, while rescuers searched for victims.
In Boudai, residents were seen on video appealing for heavy equipment to assist in rescuing individuals believed to be trapped.
Earlier on Monday, Israeli airstrikes in the coastal city of Tyre resulted in seven fatalities and 17 injuries, as reported by Lebanon’s health ministry. Israel had issued warnings for residents to evacuate the city’s centre.
Hezbollah reported clashes with Israeli forces near Lebanon’s southern border on Monday and claimed to have fired rockets at a naval base in Israel near Haifa.
Cross-border tensions between Israel and Hezbollah escalated after the armed group began launching rockets into northern Israel on 8 October 2023, following Hamas’s deadly attack on southern Israel the day prior.
The Lebanese health ministry states that more than 2,700 individuals have been killed and over 12,400 injured in Lebanon since the conflict’s escalation.
Israel initiated a military operation in southern Lebanon on 30 September, aimed at dismantling Hezbollah’s weaponry and infrastructure through “limited, localised, targeted raids.”
According to Lebanon’s government, as many as 1.3 million people have been internally displaced due to the ongoing conflict.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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