Intensified Airstrikes by Israel Target Hezbollah in Lebanon

On Monday and the early hours of Tuesday, Israel's air force unleashed a series of airstrikes across southern and eastern Lebanon, impacting areas including Sidon, the country's third-largest city.

At approximately 1 a.m. on Tuesday, a three-story commercial building located in the southern coastal district of Sidon was obliterated. This building, found within a commercial hub filled with workshops and automotive shops, was vacant at the time of the assault. Emergency services transported at least one individual to a hospital, while rescue teams scoured the vicinity for any additional casualties. Fortunately, no fatalities were reported immediately.

Earlier on Monday, Israel targeted multiple sites in southern and eastern Lebanon, justifying the strikes with claims of their utilization by Hezbollah and Hamas extremists. These actions followed warnings disseminated in Arabic by the Israeli military spokesperson regarding prospective attacks on communities in the eastern Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon. The strike in Sidon was unannounced, and the Israeli military has not yet released a statement addressing this specific incident.

In the Bekaa Valley, a residence in the village of Manara was hit; it belonged to Sharhabil al-Sayed, a Hamas military figure killed in a prior Israeli drone assault. Following the military’s warnings, the targeted residences had been evacuated, resulting in no casualties. Furthermore, a drone strike on a vehicle in the southern village of Braikeh earlier that Monday left two individuals injured, with Israel stating that this strike was aimed at Hezbollah members.

The Lebanese military initiated disarming Palestinian armed factions last year, and the government has pledged to eliminate Hezbollah's armed presence from the Litani region near the Israeli frontier by the conclusion of 2025. A scheduled government meeting on Thursday will address Hezbollah's disarmament with army chief Gen. Rudolph Haikal.

Monday’s airstrikes targeted villages situated north of the Litani River, situated at a considerable distance from the Israeli border. These initiatives follow a grueling 14-month conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited on October 8, 2023, when Hamas launched an assault on southern Israel. Hezbollah retaliated with rocket fire, leading to Israeli bombardments and a ground invasion in September 2024. The war concluded in November 2024 due to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

Since the ceasefire, Israel has conducted nearly daily airstrikes, predominantly aimed at Hezbollah operatives. According to the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, these ongoing assaults have resulted in the deaths of at least 127 civilians.