Israel Strikes Truck Convoy Entering Lebanon from Syria

A source close to Hezbollah reported late Friday that Israel had conducted airstrikes on a convoy of trucks entering Lebanon from Syria.

“Three Israeli airstrikes targeted a convoy of tanker trucks in the Hawsh el-Sayyed Ali area near the Syrian-Lebanese border, injuring one Syrian driver,” the source told AFP.

This incident is part of a series of recent Israeli strikes in the border region, the source noted.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, also reported Israeli strikes within Syria near the Lebanon border, without citing any casualties.

The targeted area near a border crossing is known to be used by Hezbollah to transport trucks and personnel between Lebanon and Syria, according to the Britain-based Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria.

“One of the strikes hit a truck convoy,” while another targeted “a farm on the outskirts of Qusayr in Homs province,” the Observatory reported on Saturday.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has a significant presence on both sides of the eastern Lebanon-Syria border, supporting the Syrian government led by President Bashar al-Assad.

The group has been exchanging fire with Israeli forces nearly every day since its ally Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, igniting the war in Gaza.

Hezbollah had toned down its attacks after the deaths of its military chief Fouad Shukur in Beirut on Tuesday and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday.

Despite this, the Lebanese group claimed responsibility for five attacks on Israeli military positions near the border on Friday.

Hezbollah’s leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, during Shukur’s funeral, warned Israel and its allies to expect “our inevitable response” to the recent killings.

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah since October has resulted in at least 542 deaths on the Lebanese side, mostly fighters but also 114 civilians, according to AFP.

On the Israeli side, at least 22 soldiers and 25 civilians have been killed, including in the annexed Golan Heights, based on army reports.