International

Israel launches more strikes on Lebanon, state media and witnesses say

people gather around remains of a burned car
Civil Defense workers inspect the remains of a burned car that was hit by an Israeli strike in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Monday.
Mohammed Zaatari | AP

After a short-lived calm following a heavy exchange of strikes between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, fighting resumed Monday.

State media and witnesses reported that Israeli strikes targeted the Lebanese border village of Tair Harfa and an area of the coastal city of Sidon on Monday afternoon. A car was hit in the latter strike.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that a man “from one of the Palestinian organizations” had survived the strike on the car. In addition to targeting Hezbollah members, Israel has occasionally targeted members of Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Lebanon. There were no immediate reports of other casualties.

Later Monday afternoon, Hezbollah announced that it had targeted military surveillance equipment in northern Israel with an exploding drone.

On Sunday, Israel launched dozens of strikes on southern Lebanon that it described as a preemptive operation, saying it had averted a major attack planned by Hezbollah in retaliation for the killing of one of its top commanders, Fouad Shukur, in an Israeli strike in Beirut last month.

Shortly afterward, Hezbollah launched a barrage of hundreds of drones and rockets, which it said was in retaliation for the killing of Shukur. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah claimed drones had hit an Israeli military intelligence site near Tel Aviv. Israel said no military target was hit. Neither offered evidence.

Hezbollah declared its retaliatory operation was over, at least for the time being, and neither side launched strikes overnight.