Two paramedics among 10 killed in Israeli strikes in south Lebanon

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Two paramedics among 10 killed in Israeli strikes in south Lebanon13 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleDavid GrittenEPAIsraeli air strikes have killed at least 10 people in southern Lebanon, state media say, where a ceasefire has failed to stop the war between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. Overnight, six people were killed and seven others were injured when a house in Kfar Dounine was hit, according to Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA). On Tuesday afternoon, Lebanon's health ministry said two paramedics from the state-run Lebanese Civil Defense emergency service were killed and a third was injured in an Israeli strike on Nabatieh, as they carried out a mission in response to an earlier attack that killed one person.

The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun expressed "sadness and regret at the killing of two Civil Defence members" in Nabatieh - who were identified as Hussein Jaber and Ahmad Noura - and emphasised that "the continued Israeli aggression hinders efforts to restore calm". The health ministry accused Israeli forces of deliberately targeting the paramedics.

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"This targeting constitutes further evidence of the Israeli enemy's blatant violation of international humanitarian law and its full disregard for all international norms," it said. The ministry said on Monday that 108 emergency medical services and healthcare workers had been killed in Lebanon during the war, with more than 140 Israeli attacks recorded on ambulances and medical facilities. NNA also reported that a Syrian man was killed and his wife was wounded when an Israeli drone targeted a motorcycle they were riding on a road in the Tayr Debba area on Tuesday.

The Israeli military said it struck a suspect who was fleeing after what it described as an unsuccessful attempt to launch a surface-to-air missile towards one of its aircraft. Hezbollah fighters had also launched explosive-laden drones towards Israeli troops operating in southern Lebanon without causing any casualties, it added. Meanwhile, Hezbollah said it had targeted Israeli troops in Naqoura, Bayada and Houla in southern Lebanon with drones, as well as a soldier in Kibbutz Manara in northern Israel.

The Israeli military has intensified its strikes on southern Lebanon in recent days. It has said it is targeting Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure, accusing the Iran-backed Shia Muslim group of violating the US-brokered ceasefire deal agreed by the Israeli and Lebanese governments in April. In response, Hezbollah has carried out rocket and drone attacks on communities in northern Israel and against Israeli troops occupying parts of southern Lebanon.

Israeli and Lebanese officials are expected to meet again in Washington on Thursday to try to find a way to end the war. The conflict started on 2 March, two days after the US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.