Lebanon reported Israeli strikes on the country’s south yesterday as the Israeli army issued evacuation warnings for more than 20 locations including the city of Nabatieh ahead of raids there.
The state-run National News Agency (NNA) said Israeli airstrikes hit several areas covered by the warning, including the villages of Rihan and Sujud, located not far from Nabatieh, and other areas not mentioned in the evacuation notice.
It said an Israeli strike killed a local official in Rihan, located in the southern region of Jezzine.
A correspondent in Nabatieh said the city was almost deserted and also reported artillery shelling there and in nearby areas overnight and on Saturday.
A day earlier, the NNA reported explosions and artillery shelling near the Ali Taher hills overlooking the city.
The Israeli army warned residents in 24 locations, both in and around Nabatieh and nearer to the coast, to “evacuate your homes immediately and move to the north of the Zahrani River,” around 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the southern border with Israel.
Last month it declared all areas south of the river “combat zones,” and has been heavily striking the area.
Israel’s military also said its air force on Saturday “intercepted a suspicious aerial target that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory.”
Israel and Hizbollah have been at war since early March when the group drew Lebanon into the Middle East conflict with rocket fire at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader in US-Israeli strikes.
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