Israeli strikes kill 16 in Lebanon despite ceasefire

Israeli military strikes killed at least 16 people, including two children, across multiple towns in southern and central Lebanon on Saturday, Lebanese state media and health officials said, marking another deadly breach of the ceasefire agreement extended through mid-May.

Deadly strikes across southern Lebanon

Seven people, including a child, were killed and 15 others injured when an Israeli strike hit the town of Saksakiyeh in southern Lebanon, according to the National News Agency. A man and his daughter died in separate airstrikes targeting Nabatieh, while three others were killed when a vehicle was struck on the road between Abbasiyah and Burj Rahal in Tyre district.

Another Israeli attack targeted a vehicle on the Moultaqa al-Nahrain road in the Chouf district of central Lebanon, killing three people traveling in the car, the agency reported. A drone strike on the Al-Masarib neighborhood in Meifdoun killed one person, while artillery shelling hit the towns of Braachit, Safad al-Battikh, and Touline, extending to Ghazieh and Froun.

Hezbollah retaliates amid clashes

The Israeli army demolished homes in Bint Jbeil's Al-Jabana neighborhood and fired illumination flares over villages in western and central southern Lebanon, NNA reported. Hezbollah said its fighters targeted two separate groups of Israeli soldiers and military vehicles in Rshaf, adding that the group intercepted an Israeli drone over al-Abbasiyah using a surface-to-air missile.

Clashes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah members erupted in the town of Al-Bayada as artillery shelling continued across the border region, sources told the agency.

Ceasefire under strain

Despite the ceasefire in place since April 17, which was later extended through mid-May, daily Israeli strikes and exchanges of fire with Hezbollah have persisted. Israel's attacks on Lebanon since March 2 — following the outbreak of war with Iran — have killed more than 2,700 people and displaced over 1 million, according to Lebanese authorities.

The United States is hosting peace talks between Israel and Lebanon on May 14-15 in Washington, as both sides maintain positions along the so-called "buffer zone" established by Israeli forces on Lebanese territory.