Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed three people and wounded several more on Saturday, according to the Lebanese health ministry, with Israel announcing one of the attacks had hit arms smugglers from a group affiliated with Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that two brothers from the town of Shebaa were hit while driving on a road on the slopes of Mount Hermon in southeastern Lebanon, “causing their SUV to catch fire and resulting in their deaths”.
The Israeli military confirmed that they had conducted a strike near Shebaa that killed two smugglers from the Lebanese Resistance Brigades, a group allied with Hezbollah.
“The terrorists were involved in smuggling weapons used by Hezbollah and their activities constituted a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” the Israeli military said, referring to the ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities with the Iran-backed militant group.
“The IDF (military) will continue to operate in order to remove any threat posed to the State of Israel,” it warned.
Lebanon’s health ministry confirmed the death toll in Shebaa, later reporting that another strike on a car in the southern village of Baraashit had killed one person and wounded four.
A similar Israeli strike on Saturday morning on a car near a hospital in the southern city of Bint Jbeil wounded seven people, according to the ministry.
The latest attacks came as the European Union added its voice to international concern over Israel’s continued strikes despite the nearly year-old truce.
“Focus by all parties must be on preserving the ceasefire and the progress achieved so far,” the European Commission’s foreign affairs spokesman Anouar El Anouni said.
Israel argues that Lebanon is acting too slowly to disarm Hezbollah and insists it has the right to carry out operations to protect its border and citizens from attack.
On Thursday it announced a series of strikes in southern Lebanon in advance, and urged civilians to evacuate the targeted areas.
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