The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on a car in Hermel, on Dec, 25, 2025. (Photo obtained by our correspondent Sarah Abdallah)
Israel provided no respite to Lebanon even on Christmas Day as the Israeli army repeatedly targeted the South and the northern Bekaa with airstrikes that killed three people, according to the Health Ministry and our correspondents.
The Israeli army also targeted a crew from the Al Mayadeen channel with gunfire in Dhaira (Sour).
Among Thursday’s victims, the Israeli army claimed to have killed a “member of the Iranian al-Quds force” in a strike on a car at the entrance to Hosh Sayyed Ali (Hermel) a region in the northern Bekaa on the border with Syria.
In a message on X, the Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson also stated that one of the day’s strikes “on the Nassirieh area” in Lebanon killed “a key member of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Operations Unit, the al-Quds Force.” The man was identified by Israel as Hussein Mahmoud Morched al-Jawhari.
Another person, who was not immediately identified, was killed in the strike, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, which also reported that another strike on a vehicle in the afternoon, on a road between Jmaijmeh and Majdel Selm, between the Marjayoun and Bint Jbeil districts, killed one person.
While the Israeli army claimed he was a Hezbollah fighter “involved in reconstructing the party’s infrastructure” in southern Lebanon, sources from Hezbollah had said earlier in the week they no longer had an armed presence there. According to information from our correspondent, the victim was identified as Mohammad Alaeddine, a man from Majdel Selm, whose funeral was announced by Hezbollah.
Targeting journalists
In the afternoon, the Israeli army also opened fire at a crew from the local Al Mayadeen channel in Dhaira (Sour). Journalist Jamal al-Gharbi and cameraman Ali Hanqir, who had been reporting in the area, were forced to leave the scene, according to our correspondent.
Speaking to L’Orient-Le Jour, Hanqir stated they had been “directly targeted by gunfire. The bullets came very close to us.” He said an Israeli drone also flew over their position and targeted an area nearby with an airstrike. “Thankfully we were not hurt,” he said.
After the shooting, the Israeli army dropped menacing leaflets over Dhaira. The leaflets contained satellite images of a village and photos that appear to show men taking pictures, alongside an unsubstantiated claim that the images purport to show men in the area “taking photos and gathering information on behalf of Hezbollah.”
An Israeli drone also fired a stun grenade on Odaisseh (Marjayoun), while strikes that had targeted a house on the outskirts of Blida ignited a fire.
Blasting of a house in Mais al-Jabal
Wednesday was also a turbulent day. At dawn, Israeli soldiers infiltrated Kfar Kila and blew up a building near the municipality. Overnight, a small drone fired four bombs on the center of Houla, damaging cars.
After a quadcopter-type drone was seen flying over an excavator parked in the western neighborhood of Mais al-Jabal, the machine’s owner contacted Lebanese army intelligence and asked for their assistance in evacuating it from the village, fearing an Israeli strike. An army and intelligence patrol arrived to the scene to move the machine.
On Wednesday evening, Christmas eve, an Israeli army drone targeted a car on a road in the village of Jennata (Sour) in South Lebanon, according to our correspondent in the region. Several people were injured, at least one of whom was in critical condition.
This morning, Israeli artillery fired flares in the vicinity of the town of Kfar Shuba as Israeli forces combed the area from the Ruwaysat al-Alam site towards the outskirts of the town, according to our correspondent.
Meanwhile, Israeli drones continue to fly over some border villages in the Marjayoun and Hasbaya districts.
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