By Middle East Correspondent
LONDON,(The Muslim News): The Israeli army carried out airstrikes and opened fire in southern Lebanon early Tuesday, while drones were seen flying over the capital Beirut despite an existing ceasefire, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA).
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said at least four people were killed and 51 injured in Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Monday. A woman was among the dead, while the wounded included three children and six women.
Israeli warplanes launched three strikes on the town of Zawtar al-Sharqiya in the Nabatieh district at around 6am (0300GMT). In Bint Jbeil, Israeli forces also fired heavy machine guns toward the Mihniyeh neighbourhood.
The Israeli military said on Tuesday that two soldiers were injured on Monday after an explosive drone struck during operations in southern Lebanon. One soldier was seriously injured and another lightly injured “as a result of an explosive drone impact during operational activity in southern Lebanon,” according to a military statement. Both were evacuated to hospital and their families were notified.
On Monday, Lebanese group Hezbollah said it carried out two drone strikes targeting Israeli soldiers and military equipment, saying the attacks were in response to repeated Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement, including strikes on southern villages and the demolition of homes.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said at least four people were killed and 51 injured in Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Monday. A woman was among the dead, while the wounded included three children and six women.
NNA reported that Israeli warplanes struck the town of Majdal Zoun in Tyre district, while the army carried out demolition operations in Hanin and a large explosion in Chihine. Airstrikes also hit Hadatha, Braachit and Haris, while intermittent artillery shelling targeted the Alman–Ech Choumariye area in Nabatieh district. Another strike hit the area between Qana and Siddiqine.
More than 2,500 people have been killed and over 1.6 million displaced across Lebanon since March 2, according to official Lebanese figures. Another update places the toll at over 2,520 killed and more than 7,800 injured during the same period.
A 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel took effect on April 17 and was later extended by three weeks following talks in Washington. However, Lebanese authorities say Israel has repeatedly violated the truce.
On Thursday last week, US President Donald Trump said Lebanon and Israel agreed to extend the ceasefire following a second round of talks in Washington.
Hezbollah has meanwhile carried out drone attacks targeting Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon and northern Israel, citing repeated Israeli violations of the truce.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz on Monday threatened Lebanon with “fire that will burn the entire country,” two days after the Israeli prime minister ordered military escalation against Beirut.
“(Hezbollah chief) Naim Qassem is playing with fire, and the fire will burn Hezbollah and all of Lebanon,” Katz said during a meeting with UN envoy Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert. He claimed the Lebanese government was “taking cover” under Hezbollah and warned: “Fire will break out and engulf the cedars of Lebanon.”
Katz also said Lebanese President Joseph Aoun was “gambling with the future of Lebanon,” adding that Israel would not accept a ceasefire coexisting with continued attacks on Israeli forces. He said Israeli leadership had instructed the army to respond with “overwhelming fire” to any perceived threat or violation.
President Aoun, however, described the ceasefire as “a first and necessary step” for future negotiations with Israel, a position he said had been conveyed to US mediators.
Meanwhile, the UN reported 299 firing incidents originating from Israeli forces south of the Blue Line in Lebanon in a single day, describing it as one of the highest volumes since the ceasefire began on April 17.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said UN peacekeepers observed continued clashes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, while also reporting restrictions on movement and obstruction of UNIFIL operations by Israeli forces. He warned that demolitions, shelling and airstrikes were severely disrupting civilian life in southern Lebanon, with more than 115,000 displaced people still living in collective shelters.
Earlier on Monday, the Israeli army said a Hezbollah drone exploded near its forces in southern Lebanon, while another was intercepted with no casualties reported.
Israeli forcers kill six Palestinians in Gaza
In Gaza, Israeli forces continued attacks despite a ceasefire in place since October 2025. Nine Palestinians were killed and 18 injured over the past 24 hours, according to the Health Ministry and medical sources. Six were killed by direct fire and one body was recovered from rubble, while others remain trapped under destroyed buildings.
Fatalities were reported in Beit Lahia, Khan Younis and Gaza City, with ongoing artillery shelling, drone strikes and demolitions in areas under Israeli control. At least 817 Palestinians have been killed and 2,296 injured since the ceasefire began, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
The ceasefire was intended to end a two-year war that began in October 2023, during which at least 72,593 Palestinians were killed and 172,399 injured, with around 90% of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure destroyed.
Israel has also escalated financial pressure on the Palestinian Authority, withholding approximately $200 million in clearance funds this month. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said most funds were deducted to settle alleged debts to Israeli utilities, while Palestinian officials say the policy is part of a broader economic siege.
Since 2019, Israel has repeatedly deducted or withheld clearance revenues, leaving the Palestinian Authority unable to fully pay salaries and deepening its financial crisis. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa said the measures amount to “another form of occupation.”
International concern is also growing over Israeli illegal settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, with more than 80 former British diplomats urging the UK government to impose stronger measures, warning that continued expansion amounts to “accelerating annexation” and undermines the two-state solution.
Across the region, humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate, with UN officials warning of escalating displacement, mounting civilian casualties, and increasing risk of wider regional escalation as fragile ceasefires continue to break down.
And yet, amid the growing civilian toll, Israel continues to assert that Hezbollah is responsible for ceasefire violations, even as strikes, shelling and military operations continue to claim lives across Lebanon and Gaza under the stated justification of “operations” and “targets.”
[Photo: People attend funeral ceremony for journalist Amal Khalil, who was killed in an Israeli military strike targeting the village of Tayri, in Nabatieh, Lebanon on April 23, 2026.
Photojournalist: Elif Ozturk/AA]
