Israeli strike on Kfar Tebnit in southern Lebanon on March 20, 2026. (Credit: Photo shared by our correspondent Mountasser Abdallah)
BEIRUT — Nearly three weeks into the escalation of war between Israel and Hezbollah which followed the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran on Feb. 28, Israel continues to pummel villages, towns, and infrastructure across southern Lebanon with airstrikes.
Israel carried out an intensive bombing campaign overnight from Thursday to Friday targeting at least 39 towns in southern Lebanon, some more than four times, according to our local correspondent.
Residential areas were particularly affected, including Deir Siryan (Marjayoun), Baflieh, between Srifa and Shahour (Sour), as well as Kfar Sir and Sir al-Gharbieh (Nabatieh).
Rescue teams reported at least two people killed and several injured in Baflieh, with search operations ongoing to locate additional victims trapped under the rubble.
Other strikes targeted neighborhoods and infrastructure in the district of Nabatieh, including al-Arid in Habboush, the al-Wadi district in Abba, a playground in Kfar Jouz, and the area between Zawtar Sharqieh and Zawtar Gharbieh.
Hezbollah claims attacks on 30 Israeli targets
Meanwhile, intense fighting between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli troops is also ongoing, with Hezbollah saying it carried out around 30 attacks on Israeli military targets on Thursday evening and overnight into Friday, including multiple artillery and rocket attacks on targets in northern Israel and on troops along the south Lebanon border.
Hezbollah claimed to have targeted “gatherings of soldiers” in Taybeh (Marjayoun), on the Mhaysbat and al-Khazzan hills, in Odaisseh, Jdeidet Mais al-Jabal, and Aitaroun (Bint Jbeil) as well as on “gatherings of military vehicles” near Taybeh and Maroun al-Ras (Bint Jbeil).
Hezbollah reported explosive attacks on an Israeli D9 bulldozer in the Taybeh sector, claiming “direct losses” among Israeli forces, and on a Merkava tank with a guided missile in the Biyad al-Faqani area of Taybeh, claiming to have “directly hit its target.”
The group said it launched rocket salvos against several Israeli military positions, including including Yiftah, Kiryat Shmona, Shomera, Ramot Naftali, Netua and Hanita, Misgav Am, Mount Hermon, and a military-industrial site in Yodfat, east of Haifa, and repeatedly targeted northern Israeli localities such as Margaliot, Kiryat Shmona (for the seventh time), Malkiya, and Shlomi.
It says it justified these strikes by issuing warning messages, similar to those issued by the Israeli army, targeting towns within a five-kilometer radius south of the Blue Line. It also claimed responsibility for further rocket fire against Yiron, Shlomi, Avivim, as well as the barracks at Zarit and Kfar Giladi.
The night’s events mark one of the most intense rounds of cross-border exchanges in recent weeks, highlighting the continued volatility along the southern Lebanese border.
Meanwhile, Israel reiterated its daily evacuation orders for all areas south of the Zahrani River, and low-altitude Israeli war jets were reported across southern Lebanese airspace.
For several days now, the army has expanded the perimeter of the area affected by these forced evacuations, which was previously limited to the south of the Litani River. This area includes urban centers with tens of thousands of inhabitants, including Nabatieh and Sour, which were specifically targeted by such orders earlier this week, and covers nearly 12 percent of Lebanese territory.
These repeated evacuation threats ordered by the Israeli army for the South, the Bekaa Valley, and the southern suburbs of Beirut have triggered a wave of forced displacement affecting more than a million people since the escalation began on March 2, although some local residents have decided to stay behind despite the dangers.
Israel says it targeted 'more than 2,000 targets' in Lebanon
As part of what it describes as an “advanced defense effort,” the Israeli army has stated, via its Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee, that its 36th, 91st, and 146th divisions are continuing targeted ground operations and incursions into southern Lebanon against Hezbollah.
According to the statement, Israeli operations have enabled the targeting of more than 2,000 "targets," including around 120 Hezbollah command centers, more than 100 weapons depots and more than 130 rocket launch pads.
Israel also claims to have “eliminated more than 570 Hezbollah fighters,” including “around 220 members of the al-Radwan force [an elite unit of Hezbollah], nearly 150 rocket operators,” as well as “two commanders of a rank equivalent to that of major general, four of a rank equivalent to brigadier general, eight colonels, and 22 battalion commanders.”
Air strikes on southern Lebanon, nine rescue workers injured
Israel's pounding of southern Lebanon continued throughout the day on Friday. A double tap strike on Deir al-Zahrani (Nabatieh) injured nine rescue workers from the Islamic Health Committee who arrived to the scene following the initial strike. Earlier, members of the same committee had recovered a body from the rubble of a previous strike in Beit Lif (Sour), in an area made difficult to access following the bombardments.
Although Beirut was spared from the strikes, two loud explosions were heard in the capital and its surroundings, caused by Israeli aircraft breaking the sound barrier.
Reporting by our regional correspondent, Muntasser Abdallah.
