Eleven dead in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon

A total of eleven people were killed in two Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon. It is one of the deadliest attacks since Lebanon agreed to a US-brokered framework agreement for peace with Israel a few weeks ago. The state news agency NNA reported that the morning attack hit a house on the outskirts of the village of Ansar. The Lebanese Ministry of Health said the dead included three children and two women. According to official information, four deaths and 17 injuries were reported in Deir al-Sahrani. Further attacks would have hit the strategically important Ali Taher Mountain. Israel speaks of response to latest attack The Israeli military said it had attacked facilities belonging to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia following a deadly attack on its soldiers. Israel will not allow the terrorist organization to harm Israeli civilians or soldiers and will continue to "eliminate threats." Hezbollah initially did not respond to the attack. A photographer from the dpa news agency who was present reported that local residents had also spoken of a Hezbollah base. Recordings in some areas of the destroyed house, of a destroyed car and a wooded valley opposite were prohibited. Deadly attack in Israel's "safe zone" Last week, two Israeli soldiers were killed in an explosion in southern Lebanon. However, Hezbollah has not yet commented on this. The shelling took place in a “safe zone” declared by Israel. According to Lebanese media, the area occupied by Israel covers around 620 square kilometers. This would correspond to around six percent of the country's area. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam wrote to X about an escalation that was undermining efforts to stabilize the situation in southern Lebanon. The responsibility for dealing with any military installations in the country lies exclusively with the state, represented by the Lebanese army and its legitimate institutions. Israel has no right to violate Lebanese territory or endanger civilians. Fragile ceasefire At the beginning of March, shortly after Israel's attacks on Iran began, Hezbollah sided with its protective force and attacked Israel. Israel responded with violent counterstrikes and a ground offensive in southern Lebanon. In June, Israel and the Lebanese government announced a framework agreement. This envisages a plan for Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon in return for Hezbollah's disarmament. However, the organization is not party to the agreement and refuses to hand over its weapons. Despite the ceasefire, the Israeli military has continued its almost daily attacks on areas north of the Litani River. Israel and Hezbollah regularly accuse each other of violating a ceasefire. According to the Reuters news agency, at least 4,300 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2nd.