Smoke rises from the so-called "Ali Taher" hills facing Nabatieh, south of the Litani, following heavy Israeli shelling on Sunday, Aug. 31. (Credit: Photo provided by our correspondent Mountasser Abdallah.)
SOUTH LEBANON — Residents of the Nabatieh region were shaken Sunday morning by intense Israeli strikes on the day commemorating the disappearance of Moussa Sadr, a key figure in the political awakening of Lebanon’s Shiite community who vanished in 1978.
Between 7:30 a.m. and nearly 9 a.m., the Israeli army carried out twelve airstrikes on the hills north of the Litani River, overlooking the city of Nabatieh. The casualty toll remains unknown, according to our correspondent in the South.
Later in the afternoon, an Israeli drone targeted a motorcycle in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, killing its rider. A second drone strike then hit the same area that had been bombed in the morning.
Israel quickly claimed responsibility for the morning strikes, saying it had targeted “underground Hezbollah military infrastructure” in the area of the Beaufort Castle. The army’s Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on social media platform X that “military activity had been detected” inside those tunnels.
The first wave of attacks, described locally as a “belt of fire”, began around 7:30 a.m. and hit the Ali al-Taher hills near Nabatieh with ten powerful strikes using high-explosive missiles, according to residents. Houses across the region shook from the force of the blasts. Debris and rocks from the targeted hills landed on the road connecting Kfartebnit to Khardali.
Shortly before 9 a.m., two more strikes by drones targeted the same hills.
In the late afternoon, another Israeli drone fired a missile at a motorcycle in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, our correspondent reported. The rider was transported to hospital in critical condition and later died from his injuries. Photos and videos from the scene showed the motorcycle burned and destroyed. The victim was identified as Ibrahim Ali Tawbeh.
These strikes came as the Lebanese government prepares to examine a plan proposed by the Lebanese army aimed at restoring the state’s monopoly over weapons — which would mean disarming Hezbollah. The cabinet has pledged to implement the plan before the end of the year.
However, Hezbollah has repeatedly urged the government to withdraw the plan, stating that any discussion about its arsenal is conditional on an end to Israeli strikes and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from positions still held in southern Lebanon, in violation of the cease-fire agreed in November.
Propaganda leaflets
Propaganda leaflets were also dropped in the morning by the Israeli army over Aita al-Shaab, in the Bint Jbeil district, according to our correspondent.
The printed texts threaten anyone "carrying out reconstruction work on behalf of Hezbollah" and feature a photo of Mohammad Kassem, a senior party official recently killed by a drone strike.
Additionally, a missile fell without exploding on the so-called Darb al-Qamar road in Mayfadoun, near Nabatieh. It remained on site in the early afternoon, embedded in the road, as authorities assessed the situation to take necessary measures. Residents also reported small explosions heard after the raids on the Ali Taher hills.
At dawn, an Israeli army drone carried out a strike on a house in Aita al-Shaab, along the border, with no casualties reported. Later in the morning, an Israeli drone dropped a sound bomb near the cemetery in the village of Ramieh, in the Bint Jbeil district.
Reporting by our regional correspondent Muntasser Abdallah.
