5 said killed in Israeli strike targeting Hezbollah weapons truck in south Lebanon
Lebanese security source says the strike hit a rocket launcher, several munitions exploded; IDF says it was acting ‘in accordance with the ceasefire understandings’
Israel struck in southern Lebanon on Friday, killing five people according to the Lebanese health ministry, with the Israeli military saying it targeted a Hezbollah weapons truck.
The airstrike came amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed terror group, which came into effect on November 27.
The Lebanese state-run National News Agency said “an Israeli drone targeted a car in Tayr Dibba,” a village near the coastal city of Tyre some 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the Israeli border.
A Lebanese security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that a rocket launcher was hit and several munitions had exploded.
There was no comment from Hezbollah on the incident and the Lebanese health ministry did not specify whether those killed were civilians or Hezbollah operatives
Confirming the strike, the Israel Defense Forces said it launched the attack after identifying Hezbollah operatives loading a vehicle up with weapons.
The strike targeted “the weapons that were on the vehicles, to remove the threat,” the military said.
The IDF said it “continues to be committed to ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon” and will “remove any threat to Israel and its citizens,” as it remains deployed to some areas of southern Lebanon.
The strike came with little more than a fortnight left to complete the implementation of the November ceasefire, which both sides have accused each other of violating.
The military statement said it was operating “in accordance with the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon.”
Under the terms of the deal, Hezbollah is to dismantle its remaining military infrastructure in the south and pull its forces back north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border.
The UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon accused Israel on Saturday of a “flagrant violation” of the Security Council resolution which forms the basis of the ceasefire, which halted more than a year of fighting that began when Hezbollah began launching near-daily attacks on northern Israel following its Palestinian ally Hamas’s devastating October 7, 2023, terror onslaught.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem warned that the terror group’s patience with alleged Israeli violations could run out before the January 26 implementation deadline.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
