A bulldozer filling a hole caused by an Israeli airstrike on the road leading to Akroum, in Akkar, Nov. 3, 2024. (Credit: Michel Hallak/ L'Orient Today)
On Sunday morning, bulldozers were active on the road linking Kfartoun to Akroum, in Akkar, northernmost Lebanon, to fill a massive crater caused by an Israeli airstrike the previous day, which had isolated the village from the rest of the region.
Since Sept. 23, when Israel began its expanded offensive in Lebanon, Israeli air forces have regularly bombarded the border area between Lebanon and Syria. The official border posts at Masnaa and Qaa-Joussieh in the Bekaa have been attacked multiple times in recent weeks, as well as various illegal border crossings, particularly in Hermel in northern Bekaa. However, this is the first time the border area in Akkar has been targeted.
Ali Asbar, the president of the municipal council of this small village located a few hundred meters from the Syrian border, stated to our correspondent Michel Hallak that the Israeli airstrike carried out the day before completely isolated Akroum and its surroundings. The strike left a crater about two and a half meters deep and over six meters in diameter on the road. In a phone interview, the official mentioned that the explosion also damaged the potable water distribution network but expressed confidence that the issue would be ''quickly resolved'' by the municipality.
Repairs to the road have begun under the directives of the caretaker Minister of Public Works, Ali Hamieh, with bulldozers from the 'al-Arz' contracting company on site in the morning.
The municipal council president also noted that another nearby road, connecting Halouas to Nassoub, was bombed as well. However, it is an unpaved agricultural path used only by two-wheelers and tractors. Repair work for this route is also set to commence.
These strikes did not result in any casualties.
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.
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