From the Liveblog of
Saturday, March 7, 2026
Lebanon says 16 killed in overnight strikes amid reported IDF raid
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Lebanon’s health ministry says 16 people were killed and 35 were wounded by Israeli strikes in eastern Lebanon overnight, amid a reported helicopter landing operation.
“The series of raids launched by the Israeli enemy on the town of Nabi Chit in the Baalbek district resulted in a preliminary total of 16 citizens being martyred and 35 others being wounded,” says the health ministry in a statement carried by Lebanon’s state-run news agency.
Hezbollah claimed four Israeli helicopters arrived from the direction of Syria, and the troops who landed in Nabi Chit were engaged by its operatives before withdrawing under heavy airstrikes.
The IDF has not commented.
The Saudi al-Hadath channel, without citing any sources, claimed earlier that the operation was an attempt to recover the body of missing Israeli Air Force navigator Ron Arad, who disappeared when he bailed from his plane over Lebanon in 1986.
The Times of Israel Community.