Lebanon: Apparently several dead in Israeli attack on East Lebanon

Enlarge image

An Israeli fighter jet over the border area with Lebanon

Photo: Jalaa Marey / AFP

The Israeli army has apparently attacked targets in eastern Lebanon for the first time since the beginning of the Gaza war.

At least two Hezbollah members were killed, the Reuters news agency reported, citing security sources.

Accordingly, the attack occurred near the city of Baalbek.

According to security sources, the area was the target of at least two Israeli attacks launched at the same time.

The region around Baalbek is considered a Hezbollah stronghold.

The Israeli army said it was “currently attacking Hezbollah terrorist targets deep in Lebanon.”

There was initially no statement from Hezbollah.

The Iranian-backed militia also reported shooting down an Israeli drone in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army later confirmed that one of its drones had been shot down in Lebanon.

There have been almost daily clashes between Israel and the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, which is allied with the radical Islamic Hamas, since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th.

The fighting is usually limited to the border region between Lebanon and Israel.

Since the beginning of the war, violence in the Israeli-Lebanese border area has increased significantly.

Israel has so far focused its attacks primarily on the border region in the south of Lebanon, but has also been attacking a little further north in recent weeks.

The latest attack represents an expansion of Israel's deployment, a Lebanese security official said.

Since the war between Israel and Hamas began, at least 278 people have been killed in southern Lebanon, according to a count by the AFP news agency.

Most of them were fighters from Hezbollah or other armed groups.

But there were also 44 civilians among the victims.

According to the army, ten soldiers and six civilians were killed on the Israeli side.

Baalbek is located in the Bekaa Valley.

It forms an important transport hub through which many agricultural transports pass.

There are also famous Roman ruins there.

lpz/AFP/Reuters