Entire family of 17 wiped out in Israeli strike in eastern Lebanon

BEIRUT

An entire family of 17 members was wiped out by an Israeli airstrike on Sunday in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon, Lebanese media said.

Efforts are underway to search for survivors after the attack that targeted the town of Zboud, the state news agency NNA reported.

The Israeli army has pounded Lebanon against what it called Hezbollah targets since Sept. 23, killing at least 816 people and injuring over 2,500, the Lebanese Health Ministry said.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 41,600 people, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by Hamas last Oct. 7.

The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the ongoing Gaza conflict into a wider regional war.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara