Israeli air raids escalated sharply on Monday, striking multiple regions across Lebanon from the eastern border near Baalbek to the southern border.
Warplanes launched two raids on the outskirts of Nabi Sheet (Bekaa) and the Shaara area near Janta (Baalbeck-Hermel), while additional strikes targeted the Rihan hills (Jezzin), Qatrani, and Mahmoudiyeh (Litani).
In the Hermel area, a pickup truck was hit by an Israeli raid without causing casualties. Further bombardments targeted Jabal al-Rafi‘ in Iqlim al-Tuffah region.
Around noon, warplanes bombed the Al-Dhour area near Al-Hmayri in the Tyre district.
Earlier on Monday morning, Israeli jets targeted a civilian vehicle on the coastal road near Al-Baysariyeh, killing one person.
15 Hezbollah Members Killed Since the Beginning of November, Says Adraee
The Israeli army announced on Monday that it had killed three Hezbollah members in three separate areas of southern Lebanon.
According to a statement from Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee, a strike carried out earlier in the day in Srifi (Tyre district) killed Samir Ali Faqih, described as a Hezbollah operative involved in transferring weapons to various parts of Lebanon.
The army also reported that it conducted two additional attacks on Sunday evening in the towns of Humin al-Fawqa and Suwaneh (South Lebanon), killing two Hezbollah fighters.
According to Adraee, 15 Hezbollah members have been eliminated since the beginning of the month. Their activities, he said, posed “a threat to the State of Israel and its citizens” and constituted “a violation of the agreements between Israel and Lebanon.”
Pressuring Lebanese Army
Amid the intensifying raids, Reuters reported, citing Lebanese and Israeli officials, that “Israel is pressuring the Lebanese Army to take a tougher stance in implementing the plan to disarm Hezbollah.”
The officials added that “Israel has been urging the Lebanese Army to search homes in southern Lebanon for weapons,” noting that “the Israeli request was rejected by the Lebanese Army command to avoid sparking internal conflict and undermining the defense strategy.”
They also told Reuters that “the army’s plan does not include searching private properties, while Israel demanded home raids during the mechanism meetings held last October.”
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