The IDF said Thursday it carried out two waves of airstrikes against Hezbollah weapons depots in southern Lebanon, targeting facilities in the villages of Mays al-Jabal, Kfar Tebanit, Bourj Qalaouiye, Debbin and others.
The military said residents were evacuated from the areas about three hours before the strikes and that precision-guided munitions, aerial surveillance and intelligence were used to minimize civilian casualties. The military said the warehouses were located in civilian areas and accused Hezbollah of using Lebanese residents as “human shields.”
Illustration of Israeli strikes on weapons storage facilities belonging to Hezbollah's Radwan Force in southern Lebanon
(Video: IDF)
IDF strikes Hezbollah arms depots across southern Lebanon
(Video: IDF)
IDF strikes Hezbollah arms depots across southern Lebanon
“This strike is part of a series of operations aimed at systematically degrading Hezbollah’s capabilities,” the IDF said in a statement, adding that since the ceasefire took effect it has killed more than 300 Hezbollah fighters and struck over 300 targets.
Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, posted photos of the strike sites on X, warning residents: “You are inside buildings used by Hezbollah. For your safety, you must evacuate immediately and distance yourselves by at least 500 meters.”
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the strikes, accusing Israel of violating UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and undermining the ceasefire monitoring mechanism.
“Israel does not respect the mechanism, nor do the countries that support the ceasefire agreement,” he said. “These violations are a dangerous failure that encourage further attacks. It is time to end Israel’s breach of Lebanese sovereignty.”
The Lebanese army said Israel had committed more than 4,500 violations since the ceasefire began, including air, land and sea incursions. It said Thursday’s strikes killed and wounded civilians in several villages, and alleged the attacks were delaying the army’s deployment south of the Litani River as part of the ceasefire plan. The military also claimed to have uncovered and dismantled an Israeli “spy device” in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah also condemned the Israeli strikes. A senior official said the raids “will not force our people to surrender” and proved that “international guarantees and diplomacy cannot restrain Israeli terror.”