Israeli strikes on Msayleh: Lebanon to file complaint with UN Security Council

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has instructed Foreign Minister Joe Rajji to file an urgent complaint with the UN Security Council over the latest series of Israeli airstrikes that hit civilian and commercial facilities in Msayleh, southern Lebanon.

The statement, published on the Grand Serail’s X account, said the “aggression … constitutes a flagrant violation of Resolution 1701 and of the terms of the ceasefire adopted last November between Israel and Hezbollah.”

Several state officials condemned the massive Israeli strikes, which destroyed hundreds of construction vehicles. President Joseph Aoun denounced the attacks on civilian sites, saying they posed “fundamental challenges” for Lebanon, while Hezbollah called on the government to “assume its responsibilities” in the face of an assault that “cannot go unanswered.”

In a statement released early in the evening, Joe Raggi said he had “given instructions to Lebanon’s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York,” Ahmad Arafa, to file the complaint. The minister also asked Lebanon’s permanent mission to publish the complaint statement and circulate it as an official document to all Security Council member states.

According to our correspondent, the bombardments left one person dead and seven injured, and destroyed hundreds of machines, including bulldozers and excavators. Initial damage estimates reach several million dollars.

Israeli drone strike

An Israeli drone flew over the town of Yohmor al-Shaqif in the Nabatieh district, broadcasting a message through loudspeakers calling on “an engineer named Tarek Mazraani” to “leave the area,” according to our correspondent in southern Lebanon.

Tarek Mazraani is the coordinator of the "gathering of the people of southern border villages", a group recently created that takes care of people who have been displaced as a result of the conflict.

Contacted by our correspondent in the South Muntasser Abdallah, Mazraani told L'Orient Today that he was surprised by the Israeli move, adding that he condemns it and considers it a direct threat against him. As for whether he plans to leave the village, he said that he did not yet decide that, noting that he has a family and children.

Mazraani added that the gathering has no political objectives, adding that its primary goal is to help displaced people with their finances, especially that most of them are unemployed and lost their financial assets.

After Israeli drones used loudspeakers to ask residents to leave the Yohmor al-Shaqif area in the Nabatieh district, drones are now broadcasting another message in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, according to our correspondent in the region. The message urges: “Drive Hezbollah out of your midst so that war does not return.”

Additionally, an Israeli drone is broadcasting provocative messages in the village of Kfar Roummane.

House blown up

Despite the cease-fire agreement concluded in November 2024 after more than 13 months of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, the latter continues to carry out near-daily strikes on Lebanese territory and maintains positions in six areas of the south. At dawn on Saturday, the Israeli army launched heavy air raids on a site containing construction equipment, drawing widespread condemnation from Lebanese officials.

The Israeli army also carried out a strike on a car between Khirbet Silm and Qalawieh, killing a Hezbollah official, and overnight from Saturday to Sunday blew up a house in the village of Odaisseh (Marjayoun district).

Meanwhile, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) announced that one of its peacekeepers was slightly injured on Saturday after an Israeli drone dropped a grenade that exploded near one of its positions in Kfar Kila (Marjayoun district).

“Just before noon yesterday, an Israeli drone dropped a grenade that exploded near a UNIFIL position in Kfar Kila. One peacekeeper was slightly injured and received medical assistance,” the peacekeeping force said on its X account.

This marks the second time this month that an Israeli drone has dropped a grenade near or on a UNIFIL position.

“This represents another serious violation of Resolution 1701 and a troubling disregard for the safety of peacekeepers carrying out their Security Council mandate,” UNIFIL added.

The Israeli army's spokesperson Avichay Adraee commented on the incident on Sunday, saying that the it "was investigated, and procedures to maintain safety when carrying out strikes near UNIFIL positions were reaffirmed." According to Adraee, the Israeli army "acted to repel suspects who attempted to rebuild a Hezbollah terrorist military infrastructure in Kfar Kila by throwing a hand grenade"

Finally, the Israeli army claimed that it distinguishes between "attempts to rebuild Hezbollah’s military infrastructure" from UNIFIL’s activities, according to the statement.

UNIFIL, whose mandate was extended for a final time in August until the end of 2026, again called on the Israeli army to “cease all attacks on peacekeepers, who are working to restore the stability that both Israel and Lebanon have committed to rebuilding.”