TEL AVIV, February 22 — At least 12 people were killed and around 50 others injured in Israeli airstrikes in eastern and southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities and media reports.
The strikes targeted command centers belonging to Hezbollah in eastern Lebanon and a separate site linked to Hamas in the south, marking one of the deadliest escalations since the November 2024 U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, according to The Times of Israel.
The Israel Defense Forces said it struck three Hezbollah command centers associated with the group’s missile force in the Baalbek area of the Beqaa Valley. The military said the strikes eliminated “a large number of operatives” who were allegedly working to accelerate force buildup and plan rocket and other attacks against Israel.
Hezbollah later confirmed the deaths of eight operatives, including Hussein Mohammed Yaghi, whom the group described as a commander, indicating a senior position. In a statement, Hezbollah said the men were killed “while defending Lebanon and its people during a treacherous Israeli attack on the Beqaa region.”
Speaking at a protest in Beirut broadcast on Hezbollah’s Al-Manar network, senior Hezbollah official Mahmud Qamati described the strikes as a “new massacre” and said the group’s only option was resistance.
“What option do we have left to defend ourselves and our country? What option do we have other than resistance?” Qamati said.
The IDF maintained that Hezbollah’s missile forces were actively planning rocket and missile attacks against Israel and that their activities violated the ceasefire understandings reached in November 2024.
In southern Lebanon, Lebanese authorities said an Israeli drone strike targeted the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the coastal city of Sidon, killing two people. The IDF said the strike targeted a Hamas command center where operatives were allegedly gathered to coordinate attacks against Israeli forces.
Lebanon’s health ministry said the two individuals killed were identified by Hamas as members of the group.
According to the IDF, the site had been used in recent months by Hamas operatives to prepare attacks and conduct training aimed at Israeli troops and civilians. The military also accused Hamas of embedding its infrastructure within civilian areas and using residents as human shields, calling it a violation of the November 2024 ceasefire.
Hamas condemned the strike on Ain al-Hilweh, rejecting Israel’s claims and asserting that the targeted site belonged to the camp’s Joint Security Force responsible for maintaining internal security.
Israel has repeatedly said it is acting to prevent Hezbollah from rebuilding its military capabilities following the ceasefire that ended more than a year of hostilities. The truce followed two months of open conflict, including Israeli ground operations in southern Lebanon, aimed at halting near-daily rocket attacks that began on October 8, 2023, a day after Hamas launched its attack on southern Israel, triggering the ongoing war in Gaza.
About The Author
