By Middle East Correspondent
LONDON, (The Muslim News): Israeli airstrikes have killed five members of the same family in southern Lebanon, as repeated ceasefire violations by Israel threaten to unravel a fragile ceasefire and intensify instability across the region.
According to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA), the overnight strike targeted a residential building belonging to the Bahja family in the town of Jibchit, in the al-Jabal neighbourhood. The attack destroyed the building, killing Mohammad Jawad Bahja and his wife Lotfiya, along with Amani Jaber and her two children, Mariam Hilal Bahja and Ali al-Rida Hilal Bahja. Rescue and ambulance teams worked through the night to clear debris and recover the victims’ bodies.
In a separate incident, Lebanon’s Civil Defence said three of its personnel were trapped under rubble after being struck while carrying out a rescue operation in the town of Majdal Zoun. The agency said its crews had been responding to casualties from an earlier Israeli airstrike when they were targeted.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the attacks, describing them as part of a pattern of assaults on emergency responders. In a statement, the presidency said the incidents demonstrated Israel’s continued violation of international laws and conventions, noting that strikes have persisted despite a temporary ceasefire.
More than 2,500 people have been killed and over 1.6 million displaced in Lebanon since March 2, according to official figures. A 10-day ceasefire that came into effect on April 17 was extended last week by a further three weeks, but Israeli hostilities have continued.
Israeli military activity has also escalated in southern Lebanon with the use of heavy munitions. Israeli media reported that a large explosion in the Qantara area, reportedly involving more than 450 tonnes of explosives targeting what was described as a Hezbollah tunnel, triggered a seismic tremor detected in northern Israel. The Geological Institute of Israel recorded the blast as a minor earthquake, underlining the scale of the strike. The reported tunnel was said to be located around 10 kilometres from the border and did not
extend into Israeli territory.
Israeli forces kill Palestinian in occupied West Bank
Beyond Lebanon, Israeli attacks have continued across the occupied Palestinian territories. In the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian man, identified by the Health Ministry as 37-year-old Abdel Halim Ruhi Hammad, was shot dead by Israeli forces in the town of Silwad, east of Ramallah. Authorities said his body was withheld by Israeli forces.
Witnesses reported that Israeli forces raided the town in the early hours, searching homes and assaulting residents. An injured individual was reportedly removed from the Ruhi family home during the operation. The Israeli military said two soldiers were wounded after being attacked during an operation in the area.
The incident comes amid a sustained escalation in Israeli military raids across the West Bank since October 2023. According to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, more than 23,000 arrests have been recorded during this period, alongside a sharp rise in fatalities and injuries. Official figures indicate that at least 1,154 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, with thousands more wounded.
UN warns Israel expanding illegal settlements in Golan Heights
Separately, the UN has warned Israel against expanding settlements in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights. UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said reported plans to increase settlement construction in the territory must be halted, reaffirming that such activity violates international law.
Israeli media reported that authorities approved a five-year plan on April 16, allocating approximately $334 million to develop infrastructure and expand the settler population in the Golan. The plan includes proposals to transform the settlement of Katzrin into what officials have described as the region’s first “city”.
UK Ambassador to US says US’s true special relationship is with Israel, not UK
Amid the regional tensions, diplomatic strains have also surfaced between Western allies. Britain’s ambassador to Washington, Christian Turner, was reported by the Financial Times to have privately suggested that the United States’ only true “special relationship” is with Israel. In recorded remarks, he described the traditional characterisation of UK-US ties as “nostalgic” and “backwards-looking”, while maintaining that bilateral relations remain strong.
Turner also commented on domestic British politics, suggesting that Prime Minister Keir Starmer had at one stage faced a precarious political position. His remarks emerged during a visit to Washington by King Charles III and Queen Camilla and have drawn attention in diplomatic circles.
As ceasefire arrangements falter and military activity continues across multiple fronts, concerns are growing that the region is entering a more volatile and unpredictable phase, with limited prospects for sustained de-escalation
[Photo: Relatives of Palestinians Hamza Ghannamieh and Ibrahim Anwar al-Khalayli killed by Israeli attack, mourn during a funeral ceremony in the Ard al-Jaloul neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon on April 28, 2026. The two Palestinian men were killed following an Israeli military strike on the town of Taybeh in southern Lebanon, an act local authorities described as a violation of the ongoing ceasefire agreement. Photojournalist: Houssam Shbaro/AA]
