Smoke rises over the southern Lebanese village of Deir Siryane following explosions carried out by the Israeli army on May 20, 2026. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — Fighting continued around Haddatha, a village in the central sector of southern Lebanon about 10 kilometers from the Israeli border, where Hezbollah said on Thursday it carried out new attacks against Israeli attempts to advance in the area. The fighting is taking place outside the Israeli-occupied "buffer zone" in the south, even as other parts of the region saw a relative lull, compared to previous days.
Hezbollah said it launched a large-scale overnight assault in the Bint Jbeil area, targeting Israeli positions in Dibil, Rshaf and around Haddatha (Bint Jbeil) between midnight and 2 a.m., using successive waves of rockets and explosive drones. It also reported firing artillery shells at Israeli soldiers and vehicles in Qouzah, along the border, and said it struck troops along the Litani River near Deir Siryane with artillery and rocket fire. The Israeli army had crossed the river toward the Nabatieh area near Deir Siryane.
Hezbollah also claimed to have attacked a patrol in Bayyada (Sour) and a group of Israeli army vehicles and soldiers in Rshaf (Bint Jbeil).
For its part, the Israeli army said among the soldiers wounded "in combat" in southern Lebanon on Wednesday was the commander of the 401st Brigade, Meir Biderman, as well as a photographer from the army press office.
According to the Israeli press, Gen. Biderman was hospitalized and operated on to remove shrapnel from his skull, when a Hezbollah drone struck a position near Dibil where he was located.
Decrease in Israeli strikes
Elsewhere in southern Lebanon, the number of attacks decreased on Thursday after a morning of relative calm. However, several strikes — including at least two deadly ones — took place in the afternoon, particularly in the Sour and Bint Jbeil districts, while house demolitions continued.
Drone strikes killed one person on the road linking Housh and Bazourieh in the Sour district, and another person in Froun (Bint Jbeil), who was riding a scooter, according to our correspondent.
In the Sour district, the Israeli army also targeted Haniyeh, Housh, Mansouri, and Srifa. In Haniyeh, a drone dropped a stun grenade near farmers without causing injuries. In the Bint Jbeil district, an airstrike hit Ghandourieh, while artillery fire was reported on Kfar Dounin and Braasheet.
Israeli aircraft also struck the area around the government hospital in Tibnin, in the Bint Jbeil district, damaging the third floor of the facility as well as several nearby homes in Yater (Bint Jbeil). Another strike on Tibnin destroyed two houses in the village.
In the Nabatieh district, Israeli artillery shelled the Hamra area between Yohmor and Zawtar Sharqieh.
The Ministry of Health reported 3,089 killed and 9,397 injured since March 2. Today alone, Israel killed 16 people and injured 35.
