To date, Israel's campaign in Lebanon has focused on the south, the eastern Bekaa Valley and the suburbs around Beirut.
In Aitou, a predominantly Christian town, Mayor Joseph Trad said the airstrike hit an apartment rented by evacuated families. In addition to the 21 people killed, eight others were injured.
Rescue workers at the site of the airstrike dug through the rubble on Monday. Burnt-out cars and trees were still scattered around.
Israel has ordered 25 villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate to areas north of the Awali River, a river that stretches 60 km north of the border between the two countries.
Visiting a military base in central Israel where four soldiers were killed in a drone attack by Hezbollah, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would continue to fight and destroy the Iran-backed group "uncompromisingly, everywhere in Lebanon – even Beirut."
At the Masnaa border checkpoint on the border with Syria, Jalal Ferhat and Amal Tefayeli, along with their five children, unloaded their belongings from a bus on their way out of Lebanon.
"There were a series of airstrikes in the neighborhood where we live, and they (Israeli forces) hit the area near my house. I have small children and I found it impossible to continue living there," said Ferhat, 40, from Baalbek, a major Hezbollah headquarters in eastern Lebanon.
In central Israel, residents rushed to shelters after sirens were sounded. The military said three projectiles that crossed the border from Lebanon were intercepted. No casualties were reported.
The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah was reignited a year ago, when the militant group began firing rockets at Israel in support of the Palestinian militant group Hamas as the war in Gaza broke out. The conflict has escalated sharply in recent weeks.
In its daily update, the Lebanese government said Israeli airstrikes had killed at least 2,309 people in Lebanon over the past year. The majority of deaths occurred between late September 2024 and now, after Israel expanded its military campaign in Lebanon. The casualty figures do not distinguish between civilians and militants.
Israel says its operation in Lebanon is designed to ensure the safe return of tens of thousands of people evacuated from northern Israel.
Israel vs UNIFIL
The Israeli military said it had killed Muhammad Kamel Naim, commander of the anti-tank missile unit of Hezbollah's Radwan Force, in an air strike in southern Lebanon.
Photo: REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim.
Hezbollah has not commented on this statement.
As Israel continues to send forces through southern Lebanon to wipe out Hezbollah and its infrastructure, tensions between Israel and the UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL are growing.
The UN said Israeli tanks stormed a UNIFIL base on Sunday.
On Monday, Mr Netanyahu called allegations that Israeli soldiers had deliberately harmed UNIFIL forces "completely false" and again demanded that the force withdraw from the combat zone near Lebanon's border with Israel.
He asserted that Hezbollah used UNIFIL's position as a cover for attacks that have killed Israelis, including Sunday's attack in which a drone targeting a military base killed four soldiers.
In a statement, Mr. Netanyahu said: "Israel has the full right to defend itself against Hezbollah and will continue to use this right."
He said he regretted the dangers UNIFIL personnel had faced, but also said the best way to ensure their safety was to "comply with Israel's request and temporarily move away from the danger zone".
On Monday, a spokesman for the force confirmed the mission would continue.
"We will stay in… southern Lebanon under the directive of the Security Council. So there needs to be an international presence there and there needs to be a UN flag in the area," said Andrea Tenenti.
The Israeli military took foreign journalists to southern Lebanon on Sunday and showed a Hezbollah tunnel entrance about 200 meters from the UNIFIL position, as well as weapons caches discovered by its soldiers.
"We are actually standing next to a Hezbollah military base close to the UN," said Brigadier General Yiftach Norkin, pointing to a trapdoor in a wooded area visible from a UNIFIL observation post.
Since announcing the border operation, the Israeli military has said it has destroyed dozens of Hezbollah tunnel entrances, launch pads and command posts.
UNIFIL said previous attacks by Israel had limited its monitoring capabilities and UN sources expressed concern that violations of international humanitarian law in the conflict could go undetected.
Meanwhile, the entire Middle East remains on high alert over Israel's decision to retaliate against Iran after the October 1 missile barrage, a series of missiles launched at Israel after the country's forces invaded Lebanon.
The Pentagon said Sunday it will deploy US troops to Israel to operate an advanced US anti-ballistic missile system.
On Monday, the US embassy in Lebanon urged American citizens to leave the country, warning that flights provided by the US government to help evacuate Americans from there since September 27 will not continue indefinitely.
Nguyen Quang Minh (according to Reuters)
Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/israel-khong-kich-mien-bac-liban-it-nhat-21-nguoi-thiet-mang-204241015101725909.htm
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