The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday said it hit Hezbollah sites in the terror group’s strongholds in south and east Lebanon overnight following evacuation warnings.

The military issued further warnings Saturday afternoon for 10 southern Lebanese villages on both banks of the Litani River, pending more strikes on Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, Lebanese media reported at least five people were killed in separate Israeli strikes in the southern region of Tyre later Saturday. Several Syrian workers were also wounded in another strike on an agricultural area in south Lebanon on Saturday, state media said. The IDF did not immediately comment on the daytime strikes.

Separately, Lebanon’s Hamas-aligned terror group Jamaa Islamiya (Islamic Group) and its armed wing, al-Fajr Forces, said in a statement Saturday that one of its members was killed in an IDF strike in east Lebanon.

According to the military, the overnight strikes targeted an underground Hezbollah weapons production site in Lebanon’s northeaster Beqaa region, as well as other infrastructure of the Iran-backed terror group near Tyre.

Get The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories

By signing up, you agree to the terms

To mitigate harm to civilians, evacuation warnings were issued in advance and precise munitions and surveillance were used in the strikes, the IDF said.

Earlier Saturday, after a lull of some 14 hours, sirens warning of a suspected drone attack from Lebanon sounded in northern Israel’s Kiryat Shmona Saturday morning. The IDF said shortly afterward that a suspect “aerial target” fell in Israel, close to the Lebanese border.

The IDF said later Saturday morning that there was an aerial impact in the Rosh Hanikra area. No sirens sounded. The military said it was investigating the incident.

There were no reports of injuries in either incident.

The IDF also said Saturday afternoon that it arrested five Israeli citizens who crossed the border into Lebanon and briefly traveled “several meters” into the country’s territory. The five were brought back to Israel and arrested.

“The IDF harshly condemns the crossing, and stresses that this is a serious incident which constitutes a criminal offense that endangers both IDF troops and civilians,” the military said.

Tyre hospital said severely damaged in overnight strikes

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said one overnight Israeli strike that targeted a site near Tyre’s Hiram Hospital caused “severe damage” to the medical center, which was included within the evacuation area advised by the IDF.

An AFP correspondent saw shattered glass, ceiling panels blown out and damaged medical equipment at the multi-story hospital.

The hospital’s CEO, Dr. Salman Aydibi, told AFP that around 40 patients were in the facility when the warning was issued, including seven in intensive care.

“We took the patients to a safer location” elsewhere inside the hospital, he said, adding that none were harmed but some 30 staff sustained minor injuries.

He said an evaluation of the damage was ongoing and that the hospital has remained operational, though the emergency department briefly closed.

It was the third strike near the facility in the latest round of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, Aydibi said.

Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the wider regional war on March 2 with its first rocket attacks on Israel since a November 2024 ceasefire agreement that ended over a year of hostilities.

The terror group has said its attacks were in response to Israel continued strikes and presence in Lebanon since that agreement, and to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at the start of the US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran on February 28.

A Lebanon truce was declared by US President Donald Trump on April 16, eight days into a truce in Iran, following the first round of US-brokered Israeli-Lebanese talks — the highest-level direct contacts in decades between the two enemy states.

The ongoing negotiations have failed to secure an agreement, with the Israel demanding the Lebanese government disarm Hezbollah and Beirut demanding Israel withdraw its troops from south Lebanon.


Which gorgeous bird do you prefer?

THIS MONTH ONLY: Join our reader support group for as little as $6/month and receive an exclusive tote bag featuring one of Israel’s native birds.

Choose between the Duchifat (orange), Israel’s national bird, or the Shaldag (blue), a beloved symbol of the Israeli landscape. 

As a member of the Times of Israel Community, you’ll also enjoy:

  • An ad-free experience of our site and podcasts.

  • Exclusive access to award-winning films via DocuNation.

  • Weekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz.


Join ToI Community & claim my bag


CLAIM YOUR BAG

Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this


You’re a dedicated reader

That’s why we started the Times of Israel – to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.

So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.

For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.

Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel


Join Our Community


Join Our Community

Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this