Lebanon: Israeli attacks reportedly kill more than 40 people

CNN
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More than 40 people have been killed in waves of Israeli attacks in Lebanon since late Saturday, according to reports from the country’s official news agency.

The National News Agency (NNA) reported air strikes on the city of Almat in central Lebanon on Sunday. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, 20 people were killed there, including three children. Video from the scene shows at least one building reduced to rubble and heavy machinery trying to clear the rubble.

Local MP Simon Abi Ramia said: “The house that was attacked belongs to one of the most prominent residents in the area and it is possible that displaced people were being accommodated there.”

Three people were killed in an attack on Mashghara, a town in south-central Lebanon, and an airstrike was carried out on the town of Debaal in Tire district of southern Lebanon, the agency added, while “intermittent Israeli artillery shelling continues.” the city of Khiam.”

At least 2,513 people have been killed and 11,719 injured in Lebanon since September 16, when Israel stepped up its campaign against Hezbollah, according to a CNN review of Lebanese Health Ministry statements.

The latest attacks follow attacks on more than a dozen different locations in Lebanon since late Saturday.

Most of the fatalities occurred in an airstrike on a civil defense center run by the Islamic Al-Rissala Scout Association in the city of Deir Qanoun, the NNA said.

Seventeen people died in the attack, NNA said, adding that rescue teams continued to carry out search operations in the rubble. Videos from the city showed extensive destruction.

An airstrike on the city of Hanawaih killed five people and buildings were attacked in almost a dozen other locations. In addition, artillery shelling hit the towns of Majdal Zoun, Tair Harfa, al-Dhaira and elsewhere.

The Israeli military said on Saturday that airstrikes had been carried out in the area of ​​Tire and further north in Baalbek.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said late Saturday that the air force had “eliminated dozens of Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon over the past day.”

The IDF said on Sunday that rockets were continuing to be fired from southern Lebanon. “About ten projectiles were identified that entered Israeli territory from Lebanon. “Some of the projectiles were intercepted and the rest fell in open areas,” it said. No injuries were reported.