The car targeted by an Israeli drone in Sir al-Gharbieh, south Lebanon, on Aug. 29, 2025. (Credit: Screenshot from a video provided by our correspondent Muntasser Abdallah.)
BEIRUT — A man identified as Ahmad Naim Maatouk, who was wounded in the Sept. 17, 2024, pagers explosions, was killed Friday in an Israeli drone strike on his car in Sir al-Gharbieh, in south Lebanon’s Nabatieh district, according to our regional correspondent.
Maatouk was returning from an eye doctor’s appointment related to his earlier injuries when the strike hit, local sources said. The Health Ministry confirmed his death in a brief statement.
Originally from Sir al-Gharbieh, Maatouk had been injured in the eye during the September explosions, when thousands of pagers in the possession of Hezbollah members and officials detonated. The devices, later revealed to have been booby-trapped months earlier by Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, killed 12 people and injured thousands. A day later, a similar attack targeted walkie-talkies.
Israeli army claims 'technical failure' killed Lebanese Army soldiers, as cease-fire violations persist
The Israeli military continues to violate on a near-daily basis the cease-fire agreement reached in November 2024, following 13 months of war with Hezbollah and two months of intensified Israeli strikes.
On Friday, an Israeli drone dropped several sound bombs on Kfar Kila in the Marjayoun district. The previous night, at around 10:30 p.m., Israeli forces fired a medium-caliber machine gun from an occupied position on the road between Houla and Markaba, targeting the eastern outskirts of both villages. No casualties were reported.
The Israeli army also addressed an incident in Naqoura, in the Sour district, where two Lebanese soldiers — one enlisted man and one officer — were killed Thursday evening when a munition exploded.
In a message on X, Israeli military Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee claimed the initial strike had targeted “construction equipment preparing to rebuild Hezbollah military infrastructure in the area.” He added that the munition had failed to detonate on impact and exploded later, possibly when the Lebanese Army was handling it. The Israeli army was “examining the possibility” that the deaths were caused by its weaponry and “regrets” the casualties, he said.
Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Menassa confirmed the two soldiers were killed while inspecting “an Israeli drone that had been shot down in the Ras Naqoura area.” He praised the army for “constantly facing immense challenges and making the greatest sacrifices to defend stability in the south and preserve the nation’s sovereignty.”
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