An Israeli attack in southern Lebanon killed three people and injured several UN peacekeepers on Thursday, the Lebanese army said, while further Israeli operations in Gaza left dozens dead.
The Lebanese army said an Israeli attack targeted a checkpoint in the southern city of Sidon, killing three Lebanese inside.
Three Lebanese soldiers were injured in the incident, the army said, along with several Malaysian members of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
UNIFIL said in a post on X that “five peacekeepers were slightly injured” in the incident.
“We remind all actors of their duty to avoid actions that endanger peacekeepers or civilians,” the UN mission added.
The Israeli military confirmed the attack in Sidon and said reports of the wounded peacekeepers were being investigated.
It said its forces are making “great efforts” to prevent harm to innocent civilians and are not being deployed “against UNIFIL.”
Fighting also continued in southern parts of Lebanon, where Israel launched a ground offensive against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in late September.
The state-run National News Agency (NNA) said Israeli forces opened fire with machine guns around Naqoura, while clashes with Hezbollah fighters were also recorded in other villages.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), meanwhile, reported that around 60 Hezbollah members were killed in the eastern Bekaa Valley.
Videos circulating on social media showed planes continuing to take off and land in Beirut despite explosions from Israeli airstrikes visible from the airport.
Hezbollah also launched dozens of rockets from Lebanon at targets in northern Israel on Thursday, triggering air raid sirens in Haifa and other areas.
Israeli rescue service Magen David Adom said it had treated an 85-year-old man injured by fragments, a day after an 18-year-old Israeli was killed in Hezbollah shelling.
Dozens have been killed as Israel expands operations in northern Gaza
Fighting also continued Thursday in northern Gaza, where the IDF said Israeli forces have expanded operations against the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
“IDF forces began operating against terrorist infrastructure in the Beit Lahia area,” the IDF said. “At the same time, IDF forces continue to operate in the area of [Jabalia] and have eliminated about 50 terrorists in the last day,” it added.
The city of Beit Lahia is located in the far north of the Gaza Strip, bordering the Jabalia refugee camp.
Palestinian sources have repeatedly reported many civilian casualties in the devastated area and the humanitarian situation has been described as catastrophic.
The IDF has called on the population to evacuate the area, but residents report that many are refusing to leave because they consider other parts of the Gaza Strip unsafe and fear the dangerous route that must be taken to leave the combat zone.
In the latest casualties, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported at least 12 deaths and around 30 injuries in the Al-Shati refugee camp when an Israeli attack hit a former school building used to house displaced people.
WAFA also reported further deaths across the Gaza Strip, including at least ten in the center and Nuseirat and others in Jabalia and the southern city of Rafah.
The Israeli military said it was investigating the reports but they could not be independently verified.
