(Reuters) – Israel launched airstrikes on eastern Lebanon early on Sunday morning, hitting what it said were Hezbollah infrastructure after the armed group shot down an Israeli drone over the country as both sides continue to exchange fire amid growing tensions. regional tensions.
The Israeli military said in a statement that fighter jets struck a military complex and three other infrastructure sites belonging to Hezbollah in the eastern city of Baalbek.
The latest attack came in response to Iran-backed Hezbollah’s shooting down of an unmanned aerial vehicle in Lebanese airspace, which the group identified as the Israeli-made Hermes 900 drone.
Hezbollah has exchanged fire with Israel across Lebanon’s southern border since October 8, a day after the Palestinian group Hamas launched an attack on Israel that sparked Israel’s war on Gaza and led to an escalation in regional tensions.
Israeli bombing killed around 270 Hezbollah fighters and around 50 civilians. Around 90,000 people were also displaced in southern Lebanon, while more than 96,000 Israelis were displaced from the country’s northern border area.
The United States and other countries have sought a diplomatic solution to the firefights between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah has said it will not stop firing before a ceasefire is implemented in Gaza.
Two security sources said Israel’s latest attack on Lebanon targeted a training camp belonging to Hezbollah in the village of Janta near the border with Syria and the town of Safri near Baalbek.
No casualties were reported in the attacks, the sources said.