Israeli troops reportedly killed a Lebanese municipal employee during a raid on a border village in southern Lebanon early Thursday, according to state media reports.
Despite a November 2024 ceasefire with Hezbollah, Israel continues to maintain troops in five parts of southern Lebanon and has intensified its airstrikes in recent weeks.
Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) described the incident as “a grave and unprecedented attack,” stating that an Israeli force entered Blida village around 1:30 a.m., advancing more than a kilometre beyond the border with the support of several vehicles.
“The force stormed the Blida municipality building, where employee Ibrahim Salameh was sleeping, and enemy soldiers proceeded to kill him,” the NNA reported.
Residents told the agency that the raid lasted several hours before Israeli forces withdrew at dawn. In a separate incident in the nearby village of Adaisseh, Israeli forces allegedly blew up a hall used for religious ceremonies.
Recent Israeli strikes have targeted southern Lebanon, with the military often claiming to hit Hezbollah positions.
According to UN rights commission spokesman Jeremy Laurence, Israeli forces have killed 111 civilians in Lebanon since the ceasefire began.
Hezbollah, which suffered significant losses during more than a year of conflict, remains under international scrutiny, with the United States urging Lebanese authorities to disarm the Iran-backed group.
During a ceasefire monitoring meeting in Naqoura on Wednesday, US envoy Morgan Ortagus said Washington welcomed Lebanon’s “decision to bring all weapons under state control by the end of the year.”
“The Lebanese army must now fully implement its plan,” she added.
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