Smoke over the site of an Israeli strike between Kfour and Toul, near Nabatieh, south Lebanon. (Photo obtained by our correspondent Muntasser Abdallah)
At least 10 people were killed by an Israeli strike on a building west of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon on Friday night, medical sources told our correspondent in the region. The sources added that the building was occupied by Syrian families.
The strike is the most deadly attack since the start of the conflict between Hezbollah and the Israeli army on Oct. 8.
The airstrike, which hit after 1 a.m., targeted a building in an industrial zone between Kfour and Toul, totally destroying the structure. The blast also caused damage to neighbouring houses, according to our correspondent's sources.
According to the provisional figures released by the Health Ministry on Saturday morning, nine people were killed, including a woman and her two children, and five were injured. However, two medical sources confirmed to L'Orient-Le Jour that one of the injured had died, bringing the total to 10 dead and four injured, two of whom are in a critical condition. All the victims are Syrian nationals.
"The scene, among the rubble and body parts, is frightening," one of the Lebanese Civil Defense volunteers present overnight told our correspondent. The volunteer also reported "cries of distress coming from the rubble." By 8:30 a.m., the search of the rubble was almost complete, according to rescue workers on site.
In a post on X, the Israeli army's Arabic-speaking spokesman, Avichay Adraee, said that the Israeli air force had targeted "a Hezbollah weapons warehouse in the Nabatieh region" during the night.
In February, an Israeli strike in Nabatieh killed seven Lebanese civilians.
Reporting contributed by Muntasser Abdullah.
This article was originally published on L'Orient-Le Jour.
