Israel Massacres Civilians in Southern, Northeast Lebanon

Israeli forces escalated their airstrikes across Lebanon on Friday, launching attacks from southern regions up to the Bekaa Valley, including Baalbek.

The intense strikes resulted in dozens of civilian casualties and left dozens of others wounded.

Civil Defense teams have so far recovered the bodies of 10 victims and several injured individuals from the site of a deadly airstrike in the town of Amhaz, north of Baalbek, an Al Mayadeen correspondent reported.

The search continues as at least three people remain missing under the rubble of the targeted building, which was struck again shortly after the initial raid.

In related strikes, our correspondent reported 15 casualties, including both fatalities and injuries, as a result of Israeli bombing on the town of Younin, located north of Baalbek. Additional Israeli air raids targeted the villages of al-Khader, Bednayel, Younin, and Nahle, adding to the growing toll in the region.

Our correspondent in the Bekaa highlighted that over 50 people were killed in today’s Israeli airstrikes on several villages and towns in the region.

Our correspondent also mentioned that Israeli warplanes launched a deadly attack in the Harbata plains in northern Bekaa, leading to an initial toll of six martyrs. Lebanon’s National News Agency also reported two martyrs and four injuries from an Israeli airstrike on the town of Tarayya, also in northern Bekaa.

Israeli warplanes throughout Friday breached the sound barrier and created sonic booms in multiple areas on numerous occasions, including Beirut, causing widespread alarm.

In southern Lebanon, additional airstrikes targeted the towns of Hanin and Ansar, adding to the extensive scope of the assault.

Earlier in the day, Israeli forces conducted approximately 14 heavy airstrikes on Beirut’s Southern Suburb, affecting neighborhoods such as Haret Hreik, Tahwitat al-Ghadeer, Ghobeiry, and the vicinity of the Mujtaba complex, as well as major routes like Sayyed Hadi Nasrallah highway, the old airport road, Roueiss, and Mreijeh. These strikes resulted in significant destruction of buildings and infrastructure.

The death toll from the ongoing Israeli aggression against Lebanon has risen to 2,867 martyrs, with 13,047 individuals reported injured, as confirmed by the Lebanese Ministry of Health’s Operations Center for Public Health on Thursday.

The Israeli aggression has not only targeted innocent civilians but also protected groups such as journalists and medical workers. On Thursday, four consecutive deliberate attacks against ambulances and gathering points for medical personnel resulted in the martyrdom of six medics and the injury of more. 

The paper, created by a contributing nation and seen by the Financial Times, highlights how the Israeli occupation forces have repeatedly attacked UNIFIL, the UN-mandated force positioned along the de facto border, destroyed multiple installations and injured troops stationed at border stations in South Lebanon, something UNIFIL has called “flagrant violations of international law.”

Moreover, the occupation has been intentionally targeting UNIFIL forces on the border. A confidential report has surfaced detailing a dozen recent incidents in which Israeli occupation forces attacked international troops in Lebanon, forcing their way into a clearly marked UN base, in addition to suspicions of using the incendiary chemical white phosphorus close enough to injure 15 peacekeepers.