Assalamu Alaikum - Air strike in southern Lebanon kills four, putting fragile truce under strain
Assalamu Alaikum - A recent Israeli air strike in southern Lebanon has reportedly killed at least four people and wounded three, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health. The strike hit the town of Kfarsir in the Nabatieh district and, officials say, involved a guided missile that targeted a car in the afternoon.
This incident adds pressure to the fragile ceasefire that was agreed between Lebanon (including Hezbollah) and Israel in November last year. Despite that truce, there have been frequent Israeli air raids across southern Lebanon and Israeli forces remain in several areas near the border. Israel says it is going after Hezbollah positions, while Lebanon and observers say civilians, medics and journalists have also been harmed.
The conflict traces back to 2023, when Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza after the October 7 attacks. After intense fighting, the two sides accepted a ceasefire in November 2024, but violations have continued.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun recently accused Israel of stepping up strikes after he proposed talks aimed at reaching a more lasting end to cross-border hostilities. He has called for negotiations to help end what he described as Israeli occupation. Israel, for its part, says Lebanon’s government has not done enough to restrain or disarm Hezbollah; Hezbollah rejects calls to disarm.
Tensions have been rising: the president also ordered Lebanon’s armed forces to meet any new Israeli incursions in the south, after reports that Israeli soldiers entered the border town of Blida. Lebanese sources say soldiers stormed the town hall and a municipal worker, Ibrahim Salameh, who had been sleeping there, was killed. The Israeli military said the action aimed to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure and that soldiers fired in response to an “immediate threat,” but provided few details.
May Allah protect the innocent and grant patience and justice to those affected by this violence. Please keep the civilians caught up in this in your duas.
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