An excavator clears the rubble of destroyed buildings from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Qana on April 12, 2026. (Credit: Kawnat Haju / AFP)
BEIRUT — Clashes between the Israeli army and Hezbollah continued on Sunday and have intensified since Saturday night. The escalation follows a day in which the death toll since the war resumed on March 2 surpassed 2,000, including 90 between Friday and Saturday. The Israeli army, however, has not resumed strikes on Beirut since Thursday.
Bint Jbeil, a key city in southern Lebanon, has been the scene of fighting since midweek, with no guarantee that Hezbollah will be able to maintain its positions in this highly symbolic area for much longer.
In response to the advance of Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, several clashes erupted overnight around Bint Jbeil, particularly in its eastern sector, where Israeli forces again attempted to infiltrate under cover of heavy bombardment. Israeli strikes continued on the city throughout the day, according to reports from our correspondent in southern Lebanon.
This surge in violence in southern Lebanon was not limited to Bint Jbeil. According to a tally provided by our correspondent, Israeli warplanes bombed a total of 38 villages in southern Lebanon on Saturday, while drones struck nine. Israeli artillery shelled nine localities, including one with phosphorus munitions. Meanwhile, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for 37 attacks on Israeli troops or positions inside Lebanon, as well as on northern Israel.
Rising human toll
During the night from Saturday to Sunday, Haris, Kounine, the outskirts of Kherbet Selm (Bint Jbeil district), Debbine, Khiam (Marjayoun), Halta, Shebaa, as well as an area between the latter village and Hebbariyeh (Hasbaya), along with Bafliyeh, Sammaiyyeh, Aitit and Cana (Tyre), were bombed by Israeli warplanes. In the Sour district, Mansouri, Hanouiyeh and Majdal Zoun were also hit by artillery fire. Israeli drones also struck the villages of Jouaiyya and Majadel.
According to media reports, the Israeli army demolished seven buildings in a single airstrike in Debel, near Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil). A provisional toll put the number of deaths from overnight strikes at eight.
During the day, Nabatieh Fawqa and the village of Qabrikha (Marjayoun district), Siddiqine, Abbasieh, Shaaitiyeh, Haniyeh and Shehabieh (Sour), as well as Maaliyeh, Haniyeh (Sour) and Yohmor al-Shaqif (Nabatieh), were hit by air and artillery strikes.
The human toll has continued to rise. According to the latest update from the health ministry, 2,055 people have been killed since March 2, including 35 over the past 24 hours. Of the total fatalities, 165 are children.
At least six people, including two women, were killed in an Israeli airstrike that hit a house in the village of Maaroub, in the Sour district, a toll confirmed by the municipality’s mayor, Hassan Fneich.
Raids on the village of Qana (Sour) during the night also killed at least three people, including two women and a young girl. The final toll has yet to be established, but could rise to as many as seven dead, as four people remain missing under the rubble. The village mayor, Ali Atiye, told our correspondent that the strikes were extremely violent, with a “belt of fire” that completely destroyed more than 12 houses. In addition, 40 homes sustained varying degrees of damage, from partial to total destruction. In Maarakeh, another Israeli attack wounded the owner of the targeted house and his brother. Finally, two bodies were recovered from the site of a strike in the village of Zrarieh (Saida).
The Lebanese Minister of Health is expected to update the toll later on Sunday.
Strikes and fighting continued throughout the day. In the Bekaa, Israeli warplanes targeted a house in Mashghara (West Bekaa). The attack left several casualties, with the exact toll still unclear, according to our correspondent.
Hezbollah said it carried out a drone attack on a military vehicle “carrying a command group” of the Israeli army in the village of Taybeh, which was captured two weeks ago by Israel. The group also claimed to have launched a “squadron of attack drones” at the Israeli locality of Kiryat Shmona around 11 a.m. on Sunday.
Finally, Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister and member of the political-security cabinet Eli Cohen said he does not believe negotiations between Israel and Lebanon can succeed and expressed the view that Israel should strike additional Lebanese infrastructure.
Iran negotiator vows 'decisive' response to US-Israeli attack