Israeli artillery shelling hits near power station in southern Lebanon amid ceasefire violations

Israeli artillery targeted the vicinity of a power station supplying towns in southern Lebanon on Sunday as bombardment intensified across the Nabatieh region amid ceasefire violations, Lebanese media reported.

Israeli shelling struck for the first time the Kfar Remman roundabout and the area surrounding the electricity station that supplies Nabatieh-area towns, with at least four shells landing near the facility, the state news agency NNA said.

Bombardment also hit the Kfarjouz area, with several shells reported near the headquarters of the Women's Progress Association, an NGO, and the Qasr al-Rihan Road, the outlet said.

Artillery fire additionally targeted the towns of Habboush, Nabatieh al-Fawqa, Meifadoun, and the surroundings of an orphanage in Choukine. Israeli airstrikes were also reported in the towns of Zawtar al-Gharbiya and Kfarsir.

According to NNA, a strike on the Saray neighborhood in the city of Nabatieh destroyed a house and caused extensive damage in the area.

Bodies recovered

Lebanese Red Cross rescue teams in Nabatieh said they were able, after more than nine days of waiting for permission to enter the area, to recover the bodies of a Syrian family -- a father, mother, and their son -- from a vehicle targeted on the Meifadoun-Zawtar-Wadi Kfar Dajjal road, according to the agency.

The bodies were found inside the vehicle in a “tragic condition” after remaining at the site since the strike due to the inability of rescue teams to reach the area, it added.

Red Cross teams also recovered the body of a man killed in a drone strike on his farm along the Choukine-Nabatieh al-Fawqa road, NNA said.

Despite a ceasefire in place since April 17, which was later extended to mid-May, the Israeli army continues to conduct daily strikes in Lebanon and exchange fire with Hezbollah.

Israel's attacks on Lebanon since March 2, soon after the Iran war began in late February, have killed 2,846, injured 8,693, and displaced over 1 million. It also maintains a so-called "buffer zone" on Lebanese territory. The US is set to host peace talks between the two countries on May 14-15 in Washington.