BEIRUT / ISTANBUL

Seven people, including two medics, were killed Monday in Israeli strikes targeting towns in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities.

One person was killed when an Israeli aircraft hit a house in the town of Kfarsir, the state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.

When an ambulance belonging to the Islamic Health Authority arrived at the site, Israeli aircraft bombed the same location again, killing two paramedics and injuring another, the agency said.

Israeli fighter jets also struck the town of Qantara in the Marjayoun district, killing four people, including two children, according to a preliminary toll released by Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

NNA also reported that the Israeli army imposed movement restrictions in villages and towns in the Bint Jbeil district by targeting several secondary roads connected to main routes, particularly in the Wadi al-Hujeir area.

Earlier Monday, Israeli warplanes attacked the area near the Abu al-Fadl al-Abbas Mosque in the Old Saraya neighborhood of Nabatieh, causing significant damage, the agency said.

Additional airstrikes targeted the area between the towns of Yater and Beit Lif, as well as the towns of Khiam and Sultaniyah, according to Lebanese media.

Monday’s attacks came two days after Israel warned it could target medical facilities and ambulances in Lebanon, alleging they were being used by Hezbollah for military purposes.

On Saturday, Israeli attacks targeted a healthcare center in southern Lebanon, killing 12 medical personnel, including doctors, paramedics and nurses.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed early Monday that the army has begun a ground offensive in Lebanon.

The Israeli army expanded airstrikes across Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, on March 2 following a cross-border attack by Hezbollah amid regional escalation in the wake of a joint offensive by Washington and Tel Aviv against Iran.

Lebanese health authorities said that the Israeli attacks have killed at least 850 people, including 66 women and 107 children, wounded 2,105 others and displaced more than 830,000 people.

Israel occupies areas in southern Lebanon, some of them for decades and others seized during the most recent war between October 2023 and November 2024.

*Writing by Lina Altawell in Istanbul