BEIRUT, Lebanon: Israeli strikes on vehicles in Lebanon killed at least nine people on Wednesday, including two children, Lebanese authorities said, as violence continued despite a US-brokered ceasefire and ahead of a new round of talks between Lebanon and Israel in Washington.
According to Lebanon’s health ministry, three strikes targeting cars along or near the coastal highway between Beirut and the southern city of Sidon killed eight people.
The ministry said the attacks “resulted in eight martyrs, including two children”.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported that two strikes hit vehicles directly on the busy coastal motorway linking Beirut to southern Lebanon.
Meanwhile, a third Israeli strike targeted an area near the highway around Saadiyat, roughly 20 to 30 kilometres south of the capital.
A fourth strike later hit a vehicle at the northern entrance to Sidon, southern Lebanon’s largest city, killing one person, the health ministry said.
The Israeli military said it had struck Hezbollah infrastructure in several areas of southern Lebanon.
The strikes came hours after Israel issued evacuation warnings to residents of six villages in southern Lebanon.
In southern Lebanon, more Israeli air strikes were reported in several towns and villages, while Hezbollah said it had launched further attacks against Israel.
The exchanges of fire have continued despite a ceasefire brokered by the United States that came into effect on April 17.
The latest escalation between Israel and Hezbollah began on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel, two days after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran.
Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold another round of direct negotiations in Washington on Thursday under US mediation, as President Donald Trump’s administration pushes for progress between the two countries.
Lebanese Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine said on Tuesday that 380 people had been killed and 1,122 wounded in Lebanon since the ceasefire took effect in April.
According to the minister, the overall death toll in Lebanon since the latest conflict began on March 2 has reached 2,896, with 8,786 wounded.
