Israeli drone strike kills 1 in southern Lebanon as forces blow up building near border

BEIRUT, Lebanon/ISTANBUL

An Israeli drone strike killed a civilian in southern Lebanon on Thursday, the Health Ministry said.

A ministry statement said the victim was riding a motorcycle when the drone hit the road between Ain Baal and Bazourieh.

Israel did not immediately comment on the attack, though it frequently claims its strikes in Lebanon target Hezbollah fighters.

In a separate incident, Israeli forces blew up a building linked to a school for people with special needs on the edge of Aita al-Shaab, a town along the border, Lebanon’s state news agency NNA reported.

The agency added that the Lebanese army was examining an Israeli drone that crashed in the border town of Adaisseh.

Heavy drone activity was also reported throughout the day over several southern communities, including Arabsalim, Houmine al-Fawqa, Nabatieh, Zibdin, Doueir and Kfar Roummane.

Surveillance flights were observed over the coastal city of Tyre, surrounding villages and the Litani River valley since the early morning.

A ceasefire was reached in November 2024, following a military offensive launched by Israel on Lebanon on Oct. 8, 2023, which escalated into a full-scale war by September 2024, killing more than 4,000 people and injuring around 17,000.

Under the truce, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by January, but it only partially pulled out troops and maintains a military presence at five border outposts.