Lebanon finds no peace from Israeli attacks/ At least 39 casualties reported

2026-05-09 22:23:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Intense attacks continue in Lebanon, with the country's Health Ministry saying at least 39 people have been killed. Israeli forces and Hezbollah have continued to exchange fire since US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire agreement between the governments of Israel and Lebanon on April 16.

Most of Israel's airstrikes have hit southern Lebanon, with the military saying it is hitting infrastructure and people linked to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia and political party.

Israel has yet to comment on the attacks. According to Lebanon's health ministry, Israeli strikes have killed more than 120 people across the country in the past week, including women and children. The Israeli military has occupied a strip of Lebanese land along the border and officials say the aim is to create what they describe as a Hezbollah-free security zone to protect northern Israeli communities.

In those areas, entire villages have been destroyed, in actions similar to those taken by the Israeli army in Gaza. Human rights groups say some cases may amount to war crimes. Hezbollah, meanwhile, has carried out attacks on Israeli troops in Lebanon and northern Israel with rockets and drones. The group said it had targeted northern Israel with a drone on Saturday in response to continued Israeli attacks.

Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that ended a previous conflict in November 2024, after which Israel carried out almost daily attacks on targets and people it said were affiliated with Hezbollah.

After the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28 and killed Iran's supreme leader, Hezbollah launched missiles and drones into Israel in retaliation on March 2. In response, Israel bombed Lebanon with airstrikes. Israeli forces re-entered southern Lebanon in early March, destroying villages and occupying 10 km (6.2 mi) of Lebanese territory.

A total of 2,795 people have been killed in Lebanon since March 2, according to the Lebanese health ministry. Israeli authorities said 17 soldiers and one civilian were killed in southern Lebanon, along with two civilians in northern Israel. /CNA