Israeli strike kills four in south Lebanon: ministry

Beirut: An Israeli strike in southern Lebanon killed four people Saturday, the Lebanese health ministry said, as Israel’s ramped-up attacks raise fears for a nearly year-long truce with Hezbollah.

Despite a November 2024 ceasefire with the Lebanese militant group, Israel maintains troops in five areas in southern Lebanon and has kept up regular air strikes claiming to target Hezbollah.

According to the health ministry, “the Israeli airstrike” in the Nabatiyeh district “killed four persons and wounded three in a preliminary toll”.

The official Lebanese National News Agency reported that the Israeli army hit a car “with a guided missile” at around 10:30 pm (2030 GMT).

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun had called for talks with Israel in mid-October, after US President Donald Trump brokered a ceasefire in Gaza.

But Aoun has accused Israel of responding to his call to come to the negotiating table by stepping up its strikes on his country.

Hezbollah first began launching cross-border fire at Israel following the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023.

That set off a more than year-long conflict that culminated in two months of open war before last year’s ceasefire was agreed.

The Islamist group, which opposes Israel, has been heavily weakened by the war but remains financially resilient and armed.

The United States has intensified pressure on the Lebanese authorities to disarm the group, a plan opposed by Hezbollah and its allies.