Air strike kills four in south Lebanon as Katz says Israel will 'deepen' attacks

Israeli military launches guided missile at car in Nabatieh

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Hezbollah is 'playing with fire'. Reuters

An air strike on southern Lebanon has killed four people as the Israeli military steps up attacks, with Defence Minister Israel Katz threatening to “deepen” his country's effort to disarm Hezbollah.

Lebanon's Health Ministry said late on Saturday that an Israeli attack in the Nabatieh district “killed four persons and wounded three in a preliminary toll”.

The official Lebanese National News Agency reported that the military hit a car “with a guided missile” late at night on the eastern outskirts of the town of Kfar Rumman.

Israel's military said in a post on X that it struck four “terrorists” from Hezbollah's Radwan Force, a special operations unit responsible for infiltrating Israeli territory. It said among those killed was the head of logistics support who had been trying to rebuild Hezbollah's “terror infrastructure” in the area.

Despite a ceasefire with Hezbollah reached last November, Israel continues to launch regular cross-border attacks against the group and maintains troops in five areas it deems strategic in southern Lebanon.

This week, the Israeli army raided a southern Lebanese town and killed a man who was asleep in a municipal building.

US special envoy Tom Barrack told The National on Saturday that Israel has intelligence that Hezbollah is rearming, which he said made it difficult for Israel to withdraw.

Tom Barrack sparks controversy by claiming Lebanon is 'failed state'

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Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has called for talks with Israel but has accused Israel of responding to his call by stepping up strikes on his country.

Hezbollah first began launching cross-border fire at Israel following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023.

That set off more than a year of conflict that culminated in two months of open warfare before last year's ceasefire was agreed.

Hezbollah was heavily weakened by the war but remains financially resilient and armed. Beirut is now under intense pressure from Washington to disarm the Iran-backed group and reassert state sovereignty using its army, a plan fiercely opposed by Hezbollah and its allies.

Mr Barrack said earlier this month that Lebanon's slow progress on disarmament could lead Israel to “act unilaterally” and launch yet another war on the country.

Mr Katz said on Sunday that “Hezbollah is playing with fire and the Lebanese President is dragging his feet”.

“The Lebanese government's commitment to disarm Hezbollah and remove it from southern Lebanon must be realised,” Mr Katz said. “Maximum enforcement will continue and will also be deepened.”