Lebanese state media said an Israeli strike in the country\u2019s south early Saturday killed seven people, the worst toll since deals in June saw a lull in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.<\/p>\n
The National News Agency (NNA) said Israel \u201cescalated its attacks on the south\u201d early Saturday, reporting that \u201ca strike launched by enemy warplanes on a home\u201d on the outskirts of the village of Ansar \u201ckilled seven people and wounded three others\u201d.<\/p>\n
It said the strike destroyed the home and that emergency rescuers were removing rubble and transporting the casualties to hospital.<\/p>\n
Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in March with rocket fire at Israel in support of its backer Iran.<\/p>\n
Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and a ground invasion that Lebanese authorities say have killed more than 4,300 people.<\/p>\n
Violence has significantly decreased since the signing of a US-Iran memorandum of understanding in June on the broader Middle East war, and a US-sponsored framework deal between Lebanon and Israel agreed later that month.<\/p>\n
But Lebanon still reports intermittent Israeli strikes occasionally causing casualties, and the broad demolitions of civilian buildings in southern villages and towns.<\/p>\n
The NNA said \u201cthe valley between Ansar and Zarariyeh was also subjected to a strike, the first at this geographical depth since the ceasefire two months ago\u201d.<\/p>\n
It also said \u201cIsraeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes targeting the Ali al-Taher ridge\u201d, a strategic hill overlooking the Nabatieh area, also reporting Israeli shelling there.<\/p>\n
The news agency said Israeli forces detonated homes in the town of Bint Jbeil near the border.<\/p>\n
The Israel-Lebanon framework deal includes the disarmament of Hezbollah, a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from south Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese army to the region, starting in \u201cpilot zones\u201d.<\/p>\n
On Friday, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem accused Lebanese authorities of subjecting the country\u2019s armed forces to undue pressure by implementing the deal.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow can you accept this ongoing humiliation of the Lebanese army, exposing it to bombardment and Israeli pressures, instead of acting as its protectors?\u201d Qassem said.<\/p>\n
This week, Human Rights Watch urged the United Nations to keep an international force in Lebanon after its peacekeepers\u2019 mandate ends this year, saying that \u201cthe peacekeepers are a crucial deterrent against attacks on civilians and human rights abuses\u201d.<\/p>\n