BEIRUT: An Israeli airstrike killed at least two people in eastern Lebanon on Thursday, in an area the Israeli military said was used by Hezbollah fighters, Lebanon’s state media reported.
“An enemy drone carried out an air strike on the town of Shaara… near the eastern Lebanon mountain range, killing two people and wounding two others, said the state-run National News Agency.
Israel said that it “struck Hezbollah terrorists” who “were identified operating within a Hezbollah production and storage facility for strategic weapons.”
According to the Israeli army, fighter jets struck “a camp and a precision missile production facility belonging to Hezbollah” in the Jurd Baalbek-Hermel region — a remote, mountainous area near the Syrian border long believed to host Hezbollah infrastructure.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry confirmed that two people were killed and several others injured in a series of airstrikes that hit the outskirts of Taraya, Shmustar, Bednayel, and Nabi Sheet, as well as rural areas in Janta, Al-Gharbieh, and Sherbin.
The attacks triggered panic at secondary schools in Shmustar and Taraya, where shattered glass injured students and teachers. Several students reportedly fainted amid the chaos.
This latest escalation comes as Israel continues to carry out strikes deeper inside Lebanese territory, amid growing tensions over Hezbollah’s refusal to disarm — a long-standing demand from both domestic and international actors advocating for stronger state sovereignty.
In a statement, Minister of Education and Higher Education Rima Karami appealed to “the major and influential countries of the world to exert pressure to halt the ongoing aggression that targets schools and civilians.”
Israel has repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Lebanon, claiming to target Hezbollah infrastructure, despite a ceasefire agreement that came into effect in November 2024.
According to the terms of the truce, the Israeli army was required to complete its withdrawal from southern Lebanon by January 2025. However, it has so far only partially withdrawn and continues to maintain a military presence at five border outposts.
