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Dubai Eye
3 days ago
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
Israeli airstrikes kill 12 in eastern Lebanon despite ceasefire
Share on Facebook Share on Messenger Share on Messenger Share on X Share on Whatsapp Israeli airstrikes killed 12 people in eastern Lebanon, according to a Lebanese security source - the attacks being the deadliest in the area since the US-brokered ceasefire between the two countries last November. The Israeli military said the airstrikes targeted training camps used by Hezbollah and warehouses it used to store weapons in the Bekaa Valley region. Bachir Khodr, governor of the Bekaa region, said seven of the dead were Syrian nationals. Israel dealt Hezbollah heavy blows in last year's conflict, killing its leader Hassan Nasrallah along with other commanders and destroying much of its arsenal. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Tuesday's strikes sent a "clear message" to Hezbollah, accusing it of planning to rebuild the capability to raid Israel through the Radwan force. Israel "will respond with maximum force to any attempt at rebuilding", he said. He added that strikes were also a message to the Lebanese government, saying it was responsible for upholding the ceasefire agreement. Hezbollah condemned the Israeli attack on Bekaa Valley, describing it as a "major escalation of ongoing Israeli aggression against Lebanon". It made no mention in its statement on whether some of its fighters were killed in the strikes. There was no immediate public response from the Lebanese government. The US has submitted a proposal to the Lebanese government aimed at securing Hezbollah's disarmament within four months in exchange for Israel halting air strikes and withdrawing troops from positions they still hold in south Lebanon. Under the terms of the ceasefire brokered by the US and France, Lebanon's armed forces were to confiscate "all unauthorized arms", beginning in the area south of the Litani River - the zone closest to Israel.
ARN News Center
3 days ago
- Politics
- ARN News Center
Israeli airstrikes kill 12 in eastern Lebanon despite ceasefire
Israeli airstrikes killed 12 people in eastern Lebanon, according to a Lebanese security source - the attacks being the deadliest in the area since the US-brokered ceasefire between the two countries last November. The Israeli military said the airstrikes targeted training camps used by Hezbollah and warehouses it used to store weapons in the Bekaa Valley region. Bachir Khodr, governor of the Bekaa region, said seven of the dead were Syrian nationals. Israel dealt Hezbollah heavy blows in last year's conflict, killing its leader Hassan Nasrallah along with other commanders and destroying much of its arsenal. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Tuesday's strikes sent a "clear message" to Hezbollah, accusing it of planning to rebuild the capability to raid Israel through the Radwan force. Israel "will respond with maximum force to any attempt at rebuilding", he said. He added that strikes were also a message to the Lebanese government, saying it was responsible for upholding the ceasefire agreement. Hezbollah condemned the Israeli attack on Bekaa Valley, describing it as a "major escalation of ongoing Israeli aggression against Lebanon". It made no mention in its statement on whether some of its fighters were killed in the strikes. There was no immediate public response from the Lebanese government. The US has submitted a proposal to the Lebanese government aimed at securing Hezbollah's disarmament within four months in exchange for Israel halting air strikes and withdrawing troops from positions they still hold in south Lebanon. Under the terms of the ceasefire brokered by the US and France, Lebanon's armed forces were to confiscate "all unauthorized arms", beginning in the area south of the Litani River - the zone closest to Israel.
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Israel launches rare attack on Syrian government forces
The Syrian government condemned the Israeli attack and said it was aimed at undermining the country's stability. It said a number of its forces had been killed, as had civilians. Advertisement Dozens of people have been killed this week in violence that erupted in the southern province of Sweida, triggered by a series of kidnappings involving Syria's Druse minority and pro-government Bedouin tribal groups. The Syrian government said it had sent forces Monday to try to calm the violence in Sweida, the Syrian Druse heartland. But those forces became embroiled in clashes with local Druse fighters, leading Israel to respond with two straight days of airstrikes on government fighters. Both Israel and Syria have sizable Druse minorities, and in Israel, Druse serve in the national military. Israeli leaders have offered to protect Syrian Druse should they come under attack during the country's post-Assad transition. Sweida province is home to an array of Druse militias, many of which have resisted efforts to integrate into the new national armed forces. Advertisement The government and local Druse figures in Sweida reached an agreement Tuesday to quell the violence, although the cease-fire deal has proved shaky, with reports of continued attacks. The US special envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, said Washington was mediating to restore calm. The clashes in Sweida were the latest flare-up of sectarian violence in Syria, where tensions linger from a nearly 14-year civil war. Footage verified by The New York Times gave a glimpse of the chaos. One video shows houses on fire Sunday as armed men walk through al-Tireh, a village in Sweida province. In another video, gunfire can be heard down the main road of al-Mazraa, a village where government forces were said to be engaging in clashes. Some videos showed convoys of government-affiliated forces that appeared to be on their way to the region Monday. A graphic photo circulating on social media showed the aftermath of an ambush on those convoys. The bodies of at least nine men, wearing camouflage, lay in a group on a road, some covered in blood. In neighboring Lebanon, Israeli airstrikes hit the eastern Bekaa Valley, a bastion of support for Hezbollah. The attack killed 12 people, most of them Syrians, who often work in agriculture in the area, said the regional governor, Bachir Khodr. It was the deadliest Israeli strike on Lebanon since a cease-fire was reached in November, ending the most destructive war in Lebanon in decades. The war began with Hezbollah firing rockets into Israel in solidarity with its ally, Hamas, in the Gaza Strip after Hamas led the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Advertisement The airstrikes Tuesday targeted facilities belonging to Hezbollah's Radwan unit, the spearhead of the group's fighting force, according to the Israeli military. Hezbollah said the attack targeted civilian water infrastructure, calling it a 'significant escalation.' Israel's defense minister, Israel Katz, said the attacks were 'a clear message' to both Hezbollah and the Lebanese government that Israel would respond with 'maximum force' to any attempt by the group to restore its military capabilities. In recent weeks, Israel has been intensifying attacks on Hezbollah in what Lebanese officials and diplomats say is an attempt to pressure it to disarm — a core requirement of the fragile truce agreement. Battered by the conflict, Hezbollah says it has already withdrawn its fighters from southern Lebanon. But it has refused to lay down its arms nationwide, insisting that Israel must first stop its near-daily attacks on Lebanon and withdraw from five positions in the country's south that it still occupies in violation of the November truce. Israel has said it will keep up attacks and hold onto the positions in southern Lebanon because Hezbollah still maintains an armed presence in the area. The stalemate has raised fears of renewed conflict. Lebanese authorities say Israel's strikes are frequently conducted without prior coordination with the US-led cease-fire monitoring committee, which is supposed to mediate consultations between the sides on sites that could potentially be targeted for attack. The Lebanese military did not receive any request from Israel on Tuesday to inspect the facilities that were targeted before the attack, according to a senior Lebanese security official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters. The Lebanese military has warned that it may suspend cooperation with the US-backed mechanism if such unilateral actions continue. Advertisement This article originally appeared in
Middle East Eye
4 days ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Israeli strikes on Lebanon kill 12, in deadliest attack since November truce
Israeli strikes on Lebanon's Bekaa Valley on Tuesday killed 12 people, the region's governor, Bachir Khodr, told Reuters. It marks the deadliest air strikes since a ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Hezbollah in November. Israel has breached the ceasefire and carried out strikes on a near-daily basis. A security source told Reuters that five of the dead were Hezbollah fighters. Khodr said seven of the dead were Syrian nationals. Syrians often work in the agricultural fields of the Bekaa region.
Al Bawaba
4 days ago
- Politics
- Al Bawaba
12 Lebanese killed, 8 wounded, in Israeli strikes on Beqaa valley
Published July 15th, 2025 - 03:13 GMT A Lebanese security source confirmed to Al Jazeera that three Israeli strikes targeted the Wadi Faara area, one of which hit a well-drilling rig. The total death toll from those strikes alone reached 12, the source said. ALBAWABA- Israeli air strikes on Lebanon's eastern Beqaa Valley, marking the deadliest escalation since the end of the last year's Israel-Hezbollah fighting. Also Read Israeli strike kills 3 people in Lebanon According to Baalbek-Hermel Governor Bachir Khodr, the attacks targeted multiple areas across the governorate, with the heaviest toll recorded in Wadi Faara, where seven Syrians, including an entire family of five, lost their lives. Three Lebanese civilians were also killed in Wadi Ara, while two more died in Shmustar. The governor confirmed that eight others were wounded in the strikes that also hit Brital and Bodai. حصيلة الاعتداءات الاسرائيلية على #بعلبك_الهرمل اليوم : - ٧ شهداء سوريين في وادي فعرا بينهم عائلة من ٥ اشخاص. -٣ شهداء لبنانيين في وادي فعرا. - شهيدين في شمسطار. - ٨ جرحى حصيلة الغارات في ( وادي فعرا / شمسطار / بريتال / بوداي )#بشير_خضر — Bachir Khodr (@BachirKhodr) July 15, 2025 A Lebanese security source confirmed to Al Jazeera that three Israeli strikes targeted the Wadi Faara area, one of which hit a well-drilling rig. The total death toll from those strikes alone reached 12, the source said. The Israeli military stated that it had conducted strikes on several Hezbollah military compounds in eastern Lebanon, including training sites linked to the group's elite Radwan Force. These latest attacks represent the deadliest since a ceasefire ended a prolonged year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, including a two-month war that significantly weakened the armed group's capabilities. © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
