The Lebanese army on patrol in South Lebanon following an Israeli strike, April 22, 2025. (Credit: Mahmoud Zayyat/AFP.)
SOUTH LEBANON — In just over 12 hours, the Israeli army has killed three people in South Lebanon, with two separate strikes, according to reports from our correspondent in the region and the Health Ministry.
In the afternoon, an Israeli drone killed one person in Houla (Marjayoun district), according to sources from our correspondent. Two missiles were fired at the victim's car near the cemetery in the Marj area. The drone then dropped bombs to prevent locals from approaching to assist the targeted driver. The Health Ministry confirmed the fatality. According to our correspondent, the victim’s name was Ahmad Ghazi Ali.
Two Hezbollah fighters were killed in Kfarjoz.
Earlier in the day, according to our correspondent in South Lebanon, an Israeli drone fired a missile at a two-wheeler traveling through the village square of Kfarjoz, northwest of Nabatieh.
The strike killed two people: Mohammad Ahmad Khreiss, the driver of the vehicle, and a second victim who was fatally struck by shrapnel while standing on the balcony of his home. The second victim, Hassan Mohammad Saidawi, who was on the balcony of his home at the time of the strike, was fatally hit by shrapnel. The Health Ministry confirmed his death, reporting a total of two fatalities in the strike on Kfarjoz, while Hezbollah confirmed that he was one of its members.
The Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, claimed that Mohammad Ahmad Khreiss had led "rocket attack plans against Israel during the recent war between Israel and Hezbollah," notably the April 26, 2024 attack on Jabal al-Rous in the disputed Shebaa Farms region. That attack resulted in the death of an Israeli civilian.
Adraee added that Khreiss had "continued preparing other attacks in South Lebanon, in violation of the cease-fire agreement between the two belligerents." On April 26, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a "complex ambush" involving guided missiles, artillery fire, and rockets that targeted an Israeli convoy near the Roueissat al-Alam site on the contested heights of Kfarchouba, near Shebaa.
Hezbollah Artillery Commander Killed in Barish
Also on Thursday morning, an Israeli naval vessel off the coast of Naqoura launched several illumination flares. The detonations were heard across the Sour region, causing tremors that alarmed residents.
The Israeli army also reported killing a senior Hezbollah artillery official in a separate drone strike on Wednesday in the locality of Barish in the Sour district of South Lebanon. According to Adraee, the strike targeted a motorcycle and resulted in the death of Yassine Abdel Menhem Ezzeddine, described as "the artillery commander in the Litani sector." He was reportedly involved in several planned attacks on Israel and in efforts to rebuild Hezbollah's artillery units.
Since the 2023–2024 war with Hezbollah, Israeli violations of Lebanese territory have become a daily occurrence, despite the cease-fire agreement in effect since Nov. 27, 2024. The Israeli army continues to occupy five positions in South Lebanon.