Israeli strikes hit south Lebanon despite US-Iran diplomacy

Lebanon says Israel launched new attacks on the country’s south on Saturday, after the Israeli army issued evacuation warnings for Nabatieh and more than 20 other locations ahead of planned raids.

The strikes came as the US and Iran signalled that they were close to a deal to end the wider Middle East war, with Lebanon also expected to feature in any agreement after Hezbollah entered the conflict in support of Tehran.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said Israeli air attacks hit several areas, especially around the southern city of Nabatieh.

An AFP photojournalist in the area reported hearing explosions near Kfar Remman, which Israel has repeatedly targeted, and seeing smoke rising from Kfar Tebnit, a town not included in the evacuation warnings.

The Lebanese army later said an Israeli drone had severely wounded one of its soldiers on the road between Kfar Remman and Nabatieh. It said the attack followed an earlier attempt to target him as he moved near a hospital close to the city.

NNA also reported that an Israeli strike killed a local official in Rihan, in the southern Jezzine region.