Israeli Strikes Kill 16 in Southern Lebanon Amid Ceasefire Reports

Israeli strikes on Nabatieh in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed 16 people and injured 12 more, the Lebanese civil defence agency has said.

In a post on Facebook, the agency said its personnel had transported those wounded to hospital and evacuated 47 others to safe areas.

Israel carried out a wave of fresh strikes on Lebanon on Saturday morning, despite Israel and Hezbollah having agreed to a ceasefire on Friday, Lebanese state media reported.

Israeli warplanes hit Nabatieh al-Fawqa shortly after midnight, before strikes on the town of Arabsalim later in the morning killed three people, Lebanon's National News Agency reported.

Drone strikes on the towns of Deir al-Zahrani and Doueir killed another two people, it added.

The Lebanese army named soldier Jameel Nahhal as one of those killed in the attacks on Saturday.

It comes less than a day after US officials said Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah had agreed to a renewed ceasefire.

The two sides had exchanged a series of clashes from Thursday night into Friday, potentially threatening the US's provisional peace agreement with Iran.

On Friday, Israel's national security minister said "all of Lebanon must burn" after the Israeli military reported that four of its soldiers had been killed in the south of the country.

The Israeli military said an "explosive drone impact" in southern Lebanon also severely injured a reserve officer on Friday, with four others sustaining light injuries.

"For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep," Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote on social media.

The Israel Defense Forces launched strikes across southern Lebanon on Thursday night, targeting what it said were Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure.