Israel launched a round of strikes on southern Lebanon on Thursday, one day after the countries began direct civilian talks.
Israel claimed the attacks were aimed at Hezbollah weapons storage sites "located in the heart of the civilian population". The military had earlier warned it would strike several areas in the south.
There were no immediate reports of casualties, but official Lebanese media said homes were damaged in the town of Mahrouna.
The Israeli attacks, a near-daily occurrence, came after civilian-led delegations were “sitting at the same table” on Wednesday in an effort to defuse rising tensions.
Mediated by the US, the once-unthinkable talks were held during a meeting of the ceasefire monitoring body at the UN peacekeeping headquarters.
The Lebanese delegation in the talks is led by lawyer and former ambassador to the US Simon Karam, while Israel’s representative is Uri Resnick, deputy director of foreign policy at the country’s National Security Council.
Here's what we know about each envoy:
Simon Karam
Mr Karam was born in 1950 in Jezzine, southern Lebanon. He graduated with a law degree from Saint Joseph University in Beirut and worked as a lawyer before entering public service. He briefly served as governor of Bekaa in 1990 and governor of Beirut in 1991.
In 1992, former Lebanese president Elias Hrawi appointed Mr Karam as Lebanon’s ambassador to Washington. He presented his credentials to US president George H W Bush. He resigned from the role in August 1993 and returned to Lebanon.
The former ambassador is known for his outspoken position against foreign influence in Lebanon and non-state armed groups. He was a founding member of the Qornet Shehwan Gathering, a coalition of prominent Christian political, religious and intellectual figures formed in April 2001 in opposition to Syria’s military and political domination of Lebanon at the time.
Mr Karam was appointed to head Lebanon's civilian delegation in the US-led talks by President Joseph Aoun. He was chosen “for his experience, and because there is a need for a diplomat with political and sovereign expertise”, a source close to the President told The National.
Uri Resnick
Mr Resnick was born in 1970 in Ottawa, Canada, and immigrated to Israel in 1988. He received his PhD in International Relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2005 and is an associate at the Federmann Centre for Rationality at the Hebrew University.
He teaches courses at several Israeli universities on game theory, foreign policy, strategic planning and public diplomacy.
Mr Resnick joined Israel’s foreign service in 2002 and has served in numerous positions in Israel and abroad, including as policy adviser to Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence. He has served in diplomatic missions in Dakar, Sofia and Los Angeles, and has worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office in Jerusalem.
He currently serves as consul general of Israel in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Military officers have previously represented the two countries at meetings on operational matters. But the civilian meeting hints at the possibility of wider talks on calming the tension that caused last year's destructive war in Lebanon, with the US playing peacemaker.
Both Israel and Hezbollah have accused each other of violating the ceasefire, which came into effect last November. Israel has since struck Lebanon on a near-daily basis and has threatened broader military action. More than 120 Lebanese civilians have been killed by Israeli fire since last year, according to the UN, and Israel still occupies five key positions in southern Lebanon.
Israel has accused Hezbollah of rearming, without providing evidence. It has intensified its attacks in recent months on what it says are Hezbollah targets and obstructed all reconstruction efforts in the south.
