Israel intensifies bombardment of southern Lebanon

Israel has intensified its "brutal bombardment" of southern Lebanon, expanding evacuation orders to more villages, RT correspondent Steve Sweeney has reported from Beirut. Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 87 people in the neighboring country since Friday, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. Local authorities said 39 people were killed on Saturday alone after strikes hit 22 towns and villages in southern Lebanon. On Monday, Israel issued evacuation orders for several more villages, bringing the total to 84 since a US-brokered ceasefire took effect in mid-April. Fighting has continued despite the truce, with both sides accusing each other of violations. Israel says its operations target alleged Hezbollah positions and infrastructure, while the Lebanon-based group says it will continue to resist Israeli military action. More than 2,800 people, including over 100 health workers, have been killed since March 2, when Israel launched its latest military operation against Hezbollah, according to Lebanese authorities. RT’s Sweeney reported that ambulance workers Ali Rida al-Basuli and Sharif Ahmad Krika were killed in separate strikes on their vehicles on Sunday. In the southern Lebanese town of Saksakia, an Israeli strike killed eight members of the same family spanning three generations, including a mother, her children, and a six-month-old baby girl, according to local authorities. Lebanese media also reported that a 12-year-old girl was killed in a drone strike while trying to flee after her father had been killed. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam told Al-Arabiya on Sunday that 86 villages in southern Lebanon remain under Israeli occupation, adding that the border city of Bint Jbeil had become "a copy of Gaza." Further US-mediated talks between Israeli and Lebanese officials are expected in Washington later this week.