Israel Strike in Bint Jbeil Kills Hezbollah Fighter and His Sister

An Israeli airstrike recently resulted in the deaths of a Hezbollah fighter and his sister in southern Lebanon, as reported by the National News Agency (NNA) and confirmed by Hezbollah. Following this, Hezbollah retaliated by launching rockets towards northern Israel.

The Israeli military disclosed that its targets on Monday were an arms depot and a military installation used by Hezbollah, the Iran-supported group. According to the NNA, the strike in the town of Bint Jbeil killed a brother and sister from the Dagher family and severely injured another sister when their home was hit twice and destroyed.

Later, Hezbollah acknowledged the loss of one of its fighters from the Dagher family in these strikes. Meanwhile, the Israeli military specified that its aircraft had targeted a Hezbollah weapons storage in Bint Jbeil and a military structure in southern Lebanon near the village of Kfar Kila, which was also reported to have been hit by an Israeli strike.

In retaliation, Hezbollah fired numerous rockets at the Israeli border town of Kiryat Shmona on Monday night, describing it as a response to “the aggression of the Israeli enemy including the horrible massacre in Bint Jbeil.” The Israeli military reported that it intercepted about half of these rockets, and there were no reported injuries.

This exchange is part of ongoing hostilities that have intensified since Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, sparking a conflict in the Gaza Strip. These skirmishes have heightened concerns of a potential full-scale conflict reminiscent of the war in the summer of 2006.

The conflict since October has resulted in the deaths of 505 people in Lebanon, mostly fighters but also including 98 civilians, and at least 29 deaths on the Israeli side, predominantly soldiers.