Despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel has continued to carry out air strikes in Lebanon, claiming they are necessary to prevent the Iran-backed militant group from rearming or re-establishing a presence along its northern border.
"Earlier today, the IAF (air force) conducted a precise intelligence-based strike in the area of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon, eliminating Hassan Abbas Ezzedine, the head of Hezbollah's aerial array in the Bader regional unit," the military said in a statement.
It said it carried out a second strike on Tuesday in the Froun area, targeting several militants.
"Several terrorists were identified in a site used by Hezbollah in the area of Froun in southern Lebanon," the military said. "An IAF aircraft struck the suspects."
Lebanon's official National News Agency reported that two people were killed in the Israeli strikes.
"An enemy Israeli drone strike targeting a car on the Deir El-Zahrani road resulted in one fatality," the news agency said, citing the health ministry.
It later reported that a second person was killed in an Israeli air strike on a vehicle in the Froun area.
Although a truce reached on November 27 largely ended more than a year of hostilities - including two months of full-scale war in which Israeli ground troops crossed the border - Israel has continued to launch periodic strikes in Lebanese territory.
Israel was initially expected to withdraw from Lebanon by February 18, after missing a January deadline, but it has maintained a presence in five strategic locations.
The ceasefire also required Hezbollah to pull back north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border, and to dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
- Border disputes -
In a separate development on Tuesday, Israel announced it had agreed to release five Lebanese citizens detained during its war with Hezbollah.
"In coordination with the United States and as a gesture to Lebanon's new president, Israel has agreed to release five Lebanese detainees," a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun's office said four of the prisoners had been freed on Tuesday and the fifth would follow on Wednesday.
Their release followed a meeting earlier Tuesday in the Lebanese border town of Naqoura, attended by representatives of Israel, Lebanon and mediators France and the United States.
"During the meeting, it was agreed to establish three joint working groups aimed at stabilising the region," the prime minister's statement said.
"These groups will focus on the five points controlled by Israel in southern Lebanon, discussions on the Blue Line and remaining disputed areas, and the issue of Lebanese detainees held by Israel."
The Blue Line is the UN-patrolled demarcation line that has served as de facto border since 2000.
In an interview with Lebanese news channel Al Jadeed, US Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus emphasised Washington's efforts to resolve the border issue.
"We want to get a political resolution, finally, to the border disputes," Ortagus said.
"When it comes to the border agreement, the land border agreement, there are 13 points -- I think that six are still problematic," she said.
Ortagus said Israel had "withdrawn from over 99 percent of the territory".
"I feel fairly confident that... we can have final resolution on the five points and ultimately on the remaining issues related to the Blue Line".
Gaza rescuers say Israeli air strike kills four
Gaza City, Palestinian Territories (AFP) Mar 11, 2025 -
An Israeli air strike hit Gaza City on Tuesday, with the civil defence agency reporting four men killed and the military saying it had targeted "terrorists" posing a threat to troops.
Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the Gaza Strip's civil defence agency, told AFP that the Israeli strike "on a group of citizens in the Netzarim area in south Gaza City" resulted in "four martyrs including two brothers", all men in their 20s.
The Israeli military said that its air forces had struck "several terrorists engaged in suspicious activity posing a threat to IDF troops".
Later in a separate statement, the military said it targeted a militant in southern Gaza in another air strike.
"Earlier today, a terrorist was identified conducting surveillance activities and gathering intelligence on IDF soldiers in southern Gaza," the military statement said.
"The IAF (air force) conducted a strike on the terrorist to remove the threat," it added, not specifying whether the militant was killed.
Israel has carried out near-daily air strikes in Gaza since early March, often targeting what the military said were militants planting explosive devices.
A fragile truce in its war with Hamas, in effect since January 19, has largely held despite the attacks and with no agreement yet on extending the ceasefire.
The first phase of the truce ended in early March, but both Israel and Hamas have refrained from returning to all-out war.
Hamas has repeatedly called for implementing the second phase of the ceasefire, which should lead to a permanent end to the war, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the release of more hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners.
Israel says it prefers an extension of phase one of the ceasefire until mid-April.
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