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Israeli strikes in Lebanon killed at least 20 people on Saturday, Lebanon’s state news agency NNA said, one day after a ceasefire with Hezbollah took effect, aimed at halting months of escalating violence.
Israel claimed the strikes were a response to alleged projectiles fired by the anti-Israel group.
An Israeli military official alleged that Hezbollah launched more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, prompting attacks in Lebanon which killed many civilians.
Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes and drones had struck multiple locations in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.
Hezbollah accused Israel of committing hundreds of ceasefire violations, and warned that continued attacks “will not pass without a response”.
It urged Washington to pressure Israel to halt its attacks.
The Israeli military, which occupies parts of southern Lebanon, said Hezbollah’s attacks constituted repeated violations of the ceasefire agreement.
It said it would respond decisively to any attacks on Israeli civilians or troops.
Hezbollah said it also remained committed to the ceasefire but would respond to any attempt by Israel to “seize territory or expand its occupation”.
The group said Israeli forces had attempted overnight to infiltrate the Ali al-Taher hill area in southern Lebanon.
Its fighters engaged the troops, it said, after which Israel carried out air strikes both inside and outside its declared operational zone.
A senior Hezbollah official said the group would not allow Israel “freedom of movement” in occupied Lebanese territory, adding that armed resistance remained legitimate as long as Israeli forces stayed in Lebanon.
One of the deadliest Israeli strikes hit a three-storey residential building in the southern town of Barish in the Tyre district, killing a father, mother and their two children, a local official said.
The Lebanese army said another Israeli strike killed a soldier on the Kfarrumman-Nabatieh road.
NNA reported that an Israeli air strike destroyed the Nabatieh branch of Lebanon’s central bank.
Lebanon’s central bank said the strike directly targeted the building, causing material damage but no casualties.
Israel’s Arabic-language military spokesperson said calm could be achieved if Hezbollah ceased what she alleged was hostile activity and violations of existing agreements.
“All night we heard explosions. We got kind of excited by those statements about a ceasefire, but everything is continuing as usual,” said Ofri Valfer, a resident of northern Israel.
“You can hear very loud blasts here, and life goes on alongside that. Hopefully, better days will come.”
Lebanon’s health ministry says 4,057 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since March 2, including medics, women and children, though it does not specify how many of the dead were combatants.
Israeli authorities say at least 32 soldiers and four civilians have been killed in fighting with Hezbollah.
The US-Iran understanding announced this week calls for an immediate and permanent halt to military operations by the parties and their allies across several fronts, including Lebanon.
Israel, which was not part of those negotiations, has opposed provisions it says could constrain its campaign in Lebanon.
