Israel’s air force carried out a series of airstrikes across southern and eastern Lebanon on Monday, targeting what it said were facilities and infrastructure used by Hezbollah and Hamas, as regional tensions remain elevated months after the end of a major cross-border conflict.
The attacks came only days before Lebanon’s army commander is scheduled to brief the country’s leadership on ongoing efforts to disarm Hezbollah in areas close to the Israeli border. This process is considered highly sensitive and is unfolding under significant diplomatic and military pressure from both Israel and the United States, according to reports cited by the Associated Press.
Almost two hours before the strikes were launched, the Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, issued public warnings on X, stating that Israeli forces would target Hezbollah and Hamas positions in two villages in the eastern Bekaa Valley and two additional locations in southern Lebanon. The warnings urged civilians to stay away from the identified sites.
In a statement, the Israeli military said that any location used for what it described as “terror activity” by Hezbollah or Hamas would be struck, adding that the targeted sites formed part of a broader network of infrastructure that posed a direct threat to Israel’s security.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that one of the strikes hit a house in the village of Manara in the Bekaa Valley. The home reportedly belonged to Sharhabil al-Sayed, a Hamas military commander who had been killed earlier in an Israeli drone strike in May 2024.
The strikes extended to villages north of the Litani River, well beyond the immediate border region. Lebanese officials have previously said that the government intends to remove all armed Hezbollah presence from the area south of the Litani by the end of 2025, in line with security arrangements put in place after the war, the Associated Press reported.
While the Lebanese army began disarming Palestinian factions last year, Hezbollah’s extensive weapons stockpile remains the most politically charged and militarily complex issue facing the government. The matter is expected to be discussed again on Thursday during a meeting involving senior officials and army commander General Rudolph Haikal.
The renewed focus on disarming Hezbollah follows a 14-month conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed group, which began after Hamas carried out an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Hezbollah joined the fighting the next day by launching rockets into Israel, triggering a prolonged period of escalation.
In September 2024, Israel launched an intense air campaign across Lebanon, followed by a ground offensive that resulted in the deaths of several senior Hezbollah political and military leaders. The fighting ended in November 2024 with a ceasefire brokered by the United States.
Despite the ceasefire, Israeli strikes have continued on an almost daily basis. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 127 civilians have been killed in Israeli attacks carried out after the truce came into effect.
On Monday, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that a drone strike on a car in the southern village of Braikeh wounded two people. Israel said the strike was aimed at two Hezbollah members.
