Israeli air strikes on southern Lebanon have killed at least 19 people, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
Ten victims, including three children and three women, died in a single strike on a house in the town of Deir Qanoun, the ministry reported. In addition, three people were wounded in that attack, among them a young girl.
Another nine people were killed and 29 injured in separate strikes across the Nabatieh and Tyre districts.
The latest violence comes less than a week after the United States announced that Lebanon and Israel had agreed to extend a ceasefire by 45 days, with fresh talks scheduled for early June. Despite the extension, exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah have persisted, particularly in southern Lebanon.
Lebanon entered the conflict on 2 March when the Iran-backed Shia Islamist group Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel. The action was in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader.
Israel maintains that its operations target Hezbollah positions, though civilian casualties, including women and children, have been frequent. In response, Hezbollah has fired rockets and drones at communities in northern Israel and at Israeli troops stationed in parts of southern Lebanon.
On Tuesday, the Israeli military reported the death of another soldier in a Hezbollah attack in southern Lebanon.
Lebanon’s health ministry stated on Monday that the overall death toll from Israeli strikes in the conflict with Hezbollah since March has now exceeded 3,000.
ALSO READ : Israel and Lebanon Agree to 45-Day Ceasefire Extension
Meanwhile, Hezbollah reported clashes with Israeli forces attempting to advance near the town square of Haddatha, claiming to have destroyed an Israeli tank, according to Agence France-Presse. The group also said it carried out attacks on Israeli forces in southern Lebanon and on Iron Dome air defence platforms near the border in northern Israel.
The US-brokered ceasefire permits Israel to conduct strikes against what it describes as Hezbollah military activity. Israeli ground forces continue to hold a roughly 10km (6-mile) strip of territory inside Lebanon seized during the fighting.
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