Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon kill at least 17, reports say

Details of the attacks

On Wednesday, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 17 people across southern Lebanon, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported. The strikes hit multiple towns and villages. The highest death toll was in Tayr Debba, east of the port city of Tyre, where nine people were killed. Three people died in the nearby village of Deir Qanoun el-Nahr, and two were killed in Seddiqin, southeast of Tyre. In the coastal city of Sidon, a drone strike on a car killed two people. Another person was killed in the Massaken al-Shaabiya area of Tyre.

Hezbollah response and broader context

Hezbollah announced that its fighters targeted Israeli troop concentrations and military vehicles in the southern Bayada and Yohmor areas with rocket and artillery fire. On Tuesday, Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed 15 people, as Israel rejected a warning from Iran to end its campaign against Hezbollah.

UN human rights investigation

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk announced on Wednesday that he is sending a team of human rights investigators to Lebanon at the request of the Lebanese government. The team will examine possible human rights violations by all sides since the start of March, with findings expected at the end of July. The evidence gathered could be used in potential war crimes prosecutions.

Conflict toll

The conflict began on March 2 when Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for an Israeli strike that killed Iran's supreme leader. Since then, at least 3,696 people have been killed in Lebanon, while Israeli authorities report 30 soldiers and four civilians killed. According to the UN, nearly one million people in Lebanon – a fifth of the population – remain displaced, and 1.4 million need humanitarian aid. A US-brokered ceasefire on April 16 has not stopped the fighting.