Israel launches strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon

The Israeli military on Friday (Dec 26) said that it launched strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, including weapons depots and a training complex. The attack came despite last year's ceasefire aimed at ending the conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

"A number of weapons storage facilities and terrorist infrastructure sites were struck, which were used by Hezbollah to advance terror attacks against the state of Israel," a military statement said.

Despite a November 2024 ceasefire that was supposed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, Israel has continued to strike in Lebanon and has maintained troops in five areas it deems strategic.

More than 340 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon since the ceasefire, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry reports.

The strikes on Friday come a day after similar Israeli attacks near the Syrian border and in southern Lebanon left three people dead.

The Israeli military had reported on Thursday it had killed a member of arch-foe Iran's elite Quds Force in a strike in Lebanon.

On Friday, the military said it had struck several military structures of Hezbollah, warning it would "remove any threat posed to the state of Israel".

Under heavy US pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon has committed to disarming Hezbollah, starting in the south of the country near the frontier.

Lebanon's army plans to complete the disarmament south of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the border with Israel -- by year's end.

Israel has questioned the Lebanese military's effectiveness and has accused Hezbollah of rearming, while the group itself has rejected calls to surrender its weapons.