Archive · 16 Aug 2026
Lebanon says Israeli strikes kill 11 in southern villages
On Saturday, Israeli airplanes dropped bombs on villages in a country called Lebanon.
Lebanon says at least 11 people died, while its state news agency first reported nine deaths.
Some of the people who died in one village were children and women.
Israel says it was hitting buildings used by a group called Hezbollah, which has a headquarters in that village.
Israel also says Hezbollah broke its promise to stop fighting and attacked Israeli soldiers first, hurting three of them.
Lebanon's prime minister says the people who died were not soldiers.
Hezbollah's leader says the peace plan that the United States helped make is unfair and is like an order written by Israel.
The plan says Israeli soldiers can stay in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah gives up its weapons, and Hezbollah has rejected it.
Many people in Lebanon have been hurt or killed in this long fight.
At least 11 people were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to Lebanon's health ministry, while the state's National News Agency reported nine deaths.
Seven people, including three children and two women, were killed when Israeli warplanes struck a house in the village of Ansar; 19 people were wounded in the attacks.
Israel's military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure, killing Ali Samir Al-Hassan, a commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan Force, in response to actions against its soldiers.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the Ansar victims were not 'military infrastructure,' and Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem rejected the U.S.-mediated peace framework as 'an Israeli order written in Israeli ink.'
At least 4,300 people have been killed in Lebanon in the latest round of hostilities since March 2.
- Who
- Israeli military forces; Hezbollah, including chief Naim Qassem and Radwan Force commander Ali Samir Al-Hassan; Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, President Joseph Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri; and civilians in the villages of Ansar and Deir El Zahrani.
- What
- Israeli airstrikes killed at least 11 people (nine per the state news agency) in southern Lebanon, with Israel saying it struck Hezbollah infrastructure and Lebanese leaders saying civilians were killed.
- When
- Saturday, August 15, following overnight strikes; the latest round of hostilities in Lebanon has been ongoing since March 2.
- Where
- The villages of Ansar and Deir El Zahrani and other areas of southern Lebanon, including Ali al-Taher hill north of the Litani River.
- Why
- Israel said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in a security zone in response to actions against its soldiers, and Netanyahu's office accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire and attacking Israeli soldiers.
Lebanese and Hezbollah View
Israeli View
Nature of the strikes
Lebanese and Hezbollah View
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the martyrs of the raid on Ansar are not 'military infrastructure' and that the women and children killed are not military targets.
Israeli View
Israel's military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure, including a central Radwan Force headquarters in Ansar, in response to actions against its soldiers, and said the commander's family was not the target.
Ceasefire violations
Lebanese and Hezbollah View
Hezbollah said the attacks would be 'met with what they deserve,' and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called on the sponsors of the peace talks to stop the war before it was too late.
Israeli View
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire and attacking Israeli soldiers, causing three injuries, and said the Israeli military struck the Hezbollah headquarters that ordered the attack.
Troop presence and the peace framework
Lebanese and Hezbollah View
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem called the U.S.-mediated framework 'an Israeli order written in Israeli ink,' and a U.S. State Department official said a permanent Israeli military presence is not consistent with commitments set out in the deal.
Israeli View
Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel will not withdraw from areas under its control until Hezbollah is disarmed, saying its forces protect northern Israel from further attacks.
- Reported death toll
- At least 11 (Lebanese health ministry); nine (state news agency)
- Ansar casualties
- 7 killed in a strike on a house, including 3 children and 2 women
- Wounded
- 19 people wounded in the attacks
- Strike targets
- Israeli military said it hit Hezbollah infrastructure, including a central Radwan Force headquarters in Ansar
- Commander killed
- Ali Samir Al-Hassan, a commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan Force
- Peace framework
- U.S.-mediated deal; Israeli troops remain in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah disarms and the Lebanese army takes control
- Hezbollah response
- Rejected framework terms as surrender; said attacks will be 'met with what they deserve'
- Total deaths in Lebanon
- At least 4,300 since March 2