19 injured in Israeli airstrikes on S. Lebanon, including journalists

Alsharq Tribune-Ahmed Essam 

Israeli airstrikes injured 19 people in southern Lebanon on Wednesday, including eight journalists, according to Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health.

Lebanon's National News Agency reported that the strikes targeted several towns and villages, including Qennarit, where intense bombardment hit more than seven buildings after Israeli forces issued evacuation warnings earlier in the day.

Eight journalists were injured while covering the strikes, local media reported. The Israeli military has not yet commented on the reports.

The health ministry's Emergency Operations Center said in a statement that the wounded included two people admitted to intensive care, three hospitalized, and 14 treated in emergency rooms.

Additional airstrikes destroyed buildings in the towns of Jarjouaa and Kfour, while further attacks were reported in the villages of Kharayeb and Ansar.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun accused Israel of pursuing a policy of systematic aggression against inhabited villages, condemned the strikes as a violation of a ceasefire and international law, and called on the international community to intervene.

A ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel, brokered by the United States and France, took effect on Nov. 27, 2024. Despite the agreement, Israeli forces have continued to carry out intermittent strikes in Lebanon, citing security threats from Hezbollah, while maintaining positions at five key points along the Lebanese border.