BEIRUT (Reuters) – Six people, including three children, were killed and 11 wounded on Saturday in an Israeli airstrike on the village of Khorebiya in east Lebanon’s Baalbek district, Lebanon’s health ministry said.
The ministry said that five children are also among the injured, two of whom are in critical condition.
Earlier on Saturday, strikes in southern Lebanon killed two medics, one in Borj Rahal and another in Kafartabnit, and injured four other aid workers, two of whom are still missing, the ministry said.
Israeli airstrikes also hit areas of Beirut’s southern suburbs controlled by Iran-backed group Hezbollah, with at least 15 strikes on Saturday, according to two security sources.
The Israeli military said the strikes were directed at Hezbollah infrastructure, including a weapons storage facility and a command center.
The Israeli military said on Saturday that one soldier was killed during fighting in southern Lebanon.
Lebanese authorities have not yet released a statement on the number of casualties in the attacks on the southern outskirts of the capital.
Israel launched ground and air operations against Hezbollah in late September after nearly a year of cross-border hostilities paralleling the Gaza war. It says its goal is to secure the return of tens of thousands of Israelis forced to flee northern Israel by Hezbollah fire.
Israel’s campaign has severely damaged Hezbollah. It has forced more than a million Lebanese to flee their homes, creating a humanitarian crisis.
Lebanon’s health ministry says at least 3,452 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 7, 2023, through Friday, mostly since late September. It does not differentiate between civilian casualties and combatants.
Israel says about 100 civilians and soldiers have been killed in Hezbollah attacks in northern Israel, the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and southern Lebanon over the past year.
