
Lebanese Health Ministry: One killed in South Lebanon's Khiam

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L'Orient-Le Jour
26 minutes ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Concrete factory blown up by Israeli army in Yaroun
Amid intensified Israeli strikes across southern Lebanon, new attacks were reported late Sunday. Three Israeli artillery shells targeted the outskirts of the town of Kfar Shuba (Hasbaya district), according to our correspondent in the south. The Israeli army also destroyed a concrete factory in Yaroun, in the Bint Jbeil district of southern Lebanon, overnight from Saturday to Sunday after infiltrating Lebanese territory, according to sources from our correspondent in the South, Muntasser Abdallah. Later in the day, an Israeli drone dropped leaflets over the town claiming that the demolished factory had been 'working for the benefit of Hezbollah.' The explosion occurred amid ongoing Israeli artillery fire reported throughout the night in southern Lebanon. According to our correspondent, around 3 a.m., two loud explosions were heard in the Bint Jbeil area during the detonation of the factory, sparking panic in nearby villages. Several hours later, an Israeli drone dropped leaflets over Yaroun — a village heavily damaged in the last war between Hezbollah and Israel — to justify the destruction of the facility. 'There is no economic benefit to cooperating with Hezbollah. This site was working for Hezbollah, which continues to threaten the region and drag it into danger,' the leaflets read. On Saturday evening around 9 p.m., two Israeli patrol boats crossed the maritime buoy line demarcating the exclusive economic zones of Lebanon and Israel and approached a Lebanese fishing boat off the coast of Naqoura (Sour district). An Israeli drone then dropped a stun grenade near the Lebanese vessel. Overnight strikes At around 10 p.m., Israeli artillery shelled the outskirts of Alma al-Shaab (Sour) multiple times. Other artillery strikes targeted the periphery of Aitaroun (Bint Jbeil), using incendiary shells that ignited fires. Separately, Israeli army Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee announced late Saturday night on X that Israeli forces had 'conducted a strike and eliminated Ahmad Mohammad Salah,' identified as 'the commander of Hezbollah's unit in charge of the Yohmor area' in the Nabatiyeh district. According to the statement, Salah had been working on reconstructing Hezbollah infrastructure in the area. Salah was reportedly killed earlier Saturday in a drone strike while riding a motorcycle in Yohmor al-Chaqif, according to our sources. Another man was killed earlier that day in a separate drone strike on Khiam (Marjayoun), which the Israeli army claimed targeted a 'member of the Radwan Force,' Hezbollah's elite unit. Since the cease-fire that took effect on Nov. 27, the Israeli army has conducted near-daily airstrikes on Lebanon — primarily in the South and the Bekaa — killing more than 270 people. Israeli forces continue to occupy five positions inside Lebanese territory along the border, from which they launch attacks and conduct regular incursions into southern villages.


L'Orient-Le Jour
26 minutes ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Death toll from violence in Sweida surpasses 1,000
Violence in southern Syria has left more than 1,000 dead in one week, according to a new toll provided by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). According to the SOHR, the toll that has been compiled since last Sunday includes 336 Druze fighters and 298 Druze civilians, 194 of whom were 'summarily executed by members of the Ministries of Defense and Interior.' The dead also include 342 members of government security forces and 21 Bedouins, including three civilians 'summarily executed by Druze fighters,' according to the same source. In addition, 15 members of government forces were killed in Israeli airstrikes, the SOHR added. Le bilan des violences à Soueida dépasse les 1 000 morts


L'Orient-Le Jour
26 minutes ago
- L'Orient-Le Jour
The government announces the end of fighting in Sweida
The Syrian government announced the end of fighting in Sweida on Sunday, after the city was retaken by Druze groups, one week after the outbreak of deadly intercommunal clashes in this southern city. Violence between Druze and Sunni Bedouin groups, which erupted on July 13 in the Sweida region, has left 940 dead, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based organization that relies on a vast network of sources across the country. 'Sweida has been cleared of all tribal fighters, and fighting in the city's neighborhoods has ceased,' wrote Syrian Interior Ministry spokesman Noureddine Al-Baba on Telegram. Nearly 87,000 people have been displaced by the fighting, according to the International Organization for Migration. On Saturday, the Syrian government announced a cease-fire in Sweida province and began redeploying forces there in an effort to restore peace. The government of interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa had already deployed troops to Sweida on Tuesday but withdrew them after Israeli airstrikes targeted several regime positions in Damascus. Israel stated its intent to protect the Druze community and cited the presence of Syrian government forces near its border as a security threat. A cease-fire was later brokered between Syria and Israel under U.S. auspices. Earlier on Saturday, in one of the city's neighborhoods, tribal fighters — some with masked faces — were seen firing automatic weapons, according to AFP footage. 'Preventing ISIS' from entering the region One fighter had a black headband inscribed with the Islamic declaration of faith. Another was seen brandishing scissors, used to cut the mustaches of elderly Druze men — a gesture considered a grave insult to this proud warrior community. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Syrian authorities to 'hold accountable and prosecute anyone guilty of atrocities, including within their own ranks.' He also urged them to use 'their security forces to prevent the Islamic State and other violent jihadists from entering the region and committing massacres,' as he posted on the social network X. The Islamic State group had seized vast territories in Syria and Iraq at the start of the civil war, which began in 2011, and declared a cross-border 'caliphate' in 2014. U.S.-backed Kurdish forces defeated them in 2019, but jihadist cells remain active, particularly in the vast Syrian desert. Homes set ablaze On Saturday, an AFP correspondent witnessed dozens of homes and vehicles set on fire, and armed men torching shops after looting them. 'Tribal fighters withdrew from Sweida on Saturday evening' following a Druze counteroffensive, but continued to shell the city, SOHR reported on Saturday. Ahmad al-Sharaa, who came to power after overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad in December, reiterated his commitment to protecting minorities and praised the 'important role played by the United States, which confirmed its support for Syria.' His Interior Ministry simultaneously announced 'the start of security force deployments in the province of Sweida […] aimed at protecting civilians and ending the chaos.' France has called on 'all parties' to strictly adhere to the cease-fire announced by Damascus and to 'refrain from any unilateral actions.' Israel, which claims to be defending the Druze — an esoteric minority sect rooted in Islam — had previously opposed the presence of Syrian government forces in the area. These latest intercommunal clashes further undermine the fragile authority of Sharaa in a country ravaged by nearly 14 years of civil war. In April, clashes between Druze fighters and security forces near Damascus and Sweida left more than 100 dead. In March, massacres left over 1,700 dead, mostly from the Alawite community — the sect from which Assad hails — following violence in western Syria, according to SOHR. The Druze community, primarily based in Sweida, numbered around 700,000 people in Syria before the civil war. The community also has significant populations in Lebanon and Israel.