Rescuers searching for survivors after an Israeli strike in Ain Baal, southern Lebanon, on May 1, 2026. (Credit; Kawnat Haju/AFP)
The Israeli army confirmed Saturday that its forces had "damaged a religious building" in Yaroun, in southern Lebanon, after outrage was sparked by the confirmation of the demolition of a convent of nuns in the village and an adjoining school.
The army stated that forces operating in the village of Yaroun had damaged a structure at a religious site while dismantling what it described as "terrorist infrastructure" in the area.
"It was noted that, during operations carried out ... to destroy the terrorist infrastructure, one of the houses located on a religious site was damaged," army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in Arabic on X. "There was no visible sign indicating that it was a religious building. As soon as clear distinctive signs were observed on another building at the site, the [Israeli] forces acted to prevent any further damage to the site," he added. Adraee justified the army's presence in the area by saying Hezbollah had launched numerous rockets toward Israel from this site.
The destruction in Yaroun, of what was left of the convent already heavily damaged in 2024 and an adjoining school, was confirmed Friday by sources from our correspondent in southern Lebanon, specifically after contact with the parish priest of Yaroun, Father Charbel Naddaf. The announcement of these demolitions has prompted numerous condemnations.
Among them, that of L’Œuvre d’Orient, a French Catholic association, which said in a statement that the army had "destroyed" in Yaroun a convent that belonged to the Sisters of the Holy Savior, "a Greek-Catholic religious order that L’Œuvre d’Orient ... supports." It denounced an "intentional act of destruction of a place of worship and the systematic destruction of housing aiming to prevent the return of civilian populations." L’Œuvre d’Orient in association with other groups and the apostolic nunciature, has notably delivered numerous convoys of humanitarian aid to Christian villages in the border area with Israel, still populated despite the general evacuation order in the region imposed by the Israeli army.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry, however, denied that the building, described as a "monastery," had been "destroyed," posting a photo of a two-story house alongside this message.
The incident comes just days after the Israeli army announced a one-month prison sentence for two of its soldiers who vandalized a statue of Jesus in another village in southern Lebanon.
Israel continues its deadly strikes in Lebanon and Hezbollah continues to claim attacks against Israeli targets despite the entry into force on April 17 of a cease-fire that aimed to end more than six weeks of war. Israeli soldiers are operating in the south in an area extending about 10 kilometers from the border, where in particular they are carrying out systematic demolitions of buildings and infrastructure using explosives or bulldozers.
