Hezbollah says it targeted Israeli troops in southern Lebanon

Hezbollah said Friday that it carried out drone attacks on Israeli targets in southern Lebanon in response to Israeli ceasefire violations.

The group said in a statement that it launched a drone attack at Israeli troops in the town of Qantara, in the Marjayoun District, claiming a “direct hit.”

Hezbollah said the attack was carried out in retaliation for Israeli strikes on civilians, including an airstrike earlier Friday on the town of Touline, where two people were killed.

In a separate statement, the group said it shot down an Israeli drone in the skies above the Housh area near Tyre using a surface-to-air missile.

Hezbollah identified the drone as a Hermes 450 model.

Lebanon’s National News Agency, meanwhile, reported “intense” clashes between Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli army in the town of Bint Jbeil.

The Israeli army claimed that it had killed six Hezbollah members during the clashes, with no casualties on its side. Hezbollah has not commented on the claim, but it occasionally announces confronting Israeli forces advancing in southern Lebanon.

Bint Jbeil lies about 3 kilometers from the southern border and serves as the center of the Bint Jbeil district in the Nabatieh district, with an estimated population of around 30,000.

Israeli forces continued strikes Friday in southern Lebanon, marking further violations of the truce.

Earlier in the day, the National News Agency said Israeli warplanes struck a house in Touline, followed by artillery shelling in the area. Additional airstrikes targeted the town of Kherbet Selm.

The attacks came hours after US President Donald Trump announced that a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon had been extended by three weeks, following ambassador-level talks at the White House.

The US-brokered 10-day ceasefire, which took effect April 16, was set to expire Sunday.

Since March 2, expanded Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed nearly 2,500 people and displaced over 1 million, according to Lebanese authorities.

*Writing by Rania Abushamala in Istanbul.