This photograph, taken in the Sour region in southern Lebanon, shows smoke rising from a controlled explosion by Israel in the village of Shamaa on May 1, 2026. (Credit: Kawnat Haju / AFP)
BEIRUT — Another bloody day in Lebanon on Wednesday. Despite a cease-fire, Israeli strikes continued and intensified in the Bekaa and southern Lebanon, where the Israeli army chief vowed to dismantle Hezbollah and said forces were ready to launch a new offensive against Iran if necessary.
On Wednesday morning, the Israeli army issued and then reiterated forced evacuation orders for several villages across the districts of Saida, Nabatieh, Sour, Bint Jbeil, Jezzine, and West Bekaa. Residents were told to leave immediately and move at least one kilometer away, as strikes were already underway in some of the targeted areas.
On the ground, Israeli bombardments hit multiple localities. In West Bekaa, a strike on Zellaya killed at least five people, including the village’s municipal president, his wife, and their children. The village was later struck again, with another attack hitting a house belonging to the victim.
In the South, Israeli strikes killed and wounded civilians over the course of the day. In Saksakieh (Saida district), a strike on a commercial center on the main road killed at least four people and injured 13. A drone strike initially failed to detonate before a subsequent air raid destroyed the site. Several of the victims were from Ansarieh, including people who had fled their village following an Israeli evacuation order. Two of those killed were in a passing vehicle. A second nearby commercial center was also destroyed, with no additional casualties reported.
In the Bint Jbeil district, an Israeli strike targeted Khirbet Silm. Artillery fire also hit the outskirts of Rashaya al-Foukhar in the Hasbaya district. In Nabatieh, the Lebanese Army and Civil Defense entered Mayfadoun to recover the bodies of people killed in previous Israeli airstrikes, following repeated appeals over five days.
Hezbollah attacks
Meanwhile, Hezbollah claimed several attacks on Israeli positions and vehicles in southern Lebanon, saying it had targeted gatherings of soldiers and military vehicles in several border localities using drones and rockets, including Taybeh, Houla, Qaouzah, Deir Siryane, Naqoura and Bayyada. The group said it had hit its targets but did not provide casualty figures.
In this context, Israeli army chief of staff Eyal Zamir said from southern Lebanon that the army is determined to continue operations against Hezbollah and ready, if necessary, to expand its actions in the region, also referring to Iran. “We will seize every opportunity to deepen the dismantling of Hezbollah and continue to weaken it,” he said during a visit to troops deployed in the Khiam area.
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