Israeli air and ground strikes in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley have killed at least 41 people and wounded 40, the Ministry of Public Health said on Sunday.
The dead include three Lebanese army soldiers and one member of the General Security Directorate.
The raids targeted the town of Nabi Chit after Hezbollah launched missiles at Israel on Monday to avenge the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
According to a report of Al Jazeera, the attacks mark the deepest Israeli incursion into eastern Lebanon since November 2024.
Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli commandos moved under cover of darkness towards a cemetery in Nabi Chit. Clashes broke out when local residents and resistance fighters confronted the troops. Warplanes and helicopters then carried out around 40 air strikes after the unit was exposed.
Hezbollah said its fighters engaged the Israeli forces as they landed from helicopters from the Syrian direction. Rockets were fired at Israeli troops during their withdrawal. The group said the clashes escalated after the incursion was discovered.
Nabi Chit had already faced heavy bombardment, with at least 13 air strikes on Friday leaving nine dead, according to Lebanese authorities. Israeli forces have also sent troops into southern Lebanon, though the Bekaa Valley marks a significant northern escalation.
Tensions in Lebanon remain high. Hezbollah continues attacks despite a government ban on its military activity. The southern suburbs of Beirut have suffered relentless Israeli strikes, displacing tens of thousands of civilians. The Lebanese Health Ministry says at least 294 people have died this week, with over 1,000 injured and roughly 95,000 displaced.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam warned of severe humanitarian and political consequences from the displacement. “Our country has been drawn into a devastating war that we did not seek and did not choose,” he said.
The latest strikes highlight how quickly the regional conflict involving Israel, Hezbollah, and Iran is spreading, threatening wider instability across Lebanon.
