6 killed in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, areas near Beirut despite Trump's truce claim

Israeli airstrikes in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre have killed at least six people, as Israeli acts of aggression continue unabated despite assertions by US President Donald Trump that he had persuaded the Tel Aviv regime to cease its assaults in Lebanon. 

According to Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA), the strikes killed four Syrians and two Palestinians in the al-Hawsh region. 

The NNA also reported that Israeli air raids targeted other towns in the Tyre and Nabatiyeh areas, leading to injuries. 

In Marjayoun, local officials stated that Israeli forces carried out three strong bombings following a night filled with numerous explosions in that area. 

These blasts caused destruction to various properties, damaging windows and shop fronts in the town of Jdeideh in Marjayoun.

Additionally, Lebanese state media reported that an Israeli strike occurred near Beirut on Wednesday, alongside assaults throughout southern Lebanon, just before a second day of discussions between Lebanon and Israel in Washington. 

The NNA reported that a vehicle was hit along the Khaldeh highway, which is situated at the southern entrance of the Lebanese capital. 

This wave of attacks followed a previous day's drone strikes by Israel in southern Lebanon, which resulted in 11 fatalities, including a man and his two children, despite Trump’s announcement about an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah to reduce hostilities. 

On June 1, Trump said he had been in communication with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and had contacted Hezbollah through intermediaries, stating that no Israeli troops would be sent to Beirut.

In spite of this, the Israeli military persisted in its heavy bombardment of Lebanon on Tuesday. 

The escalation by Israel has made it harder to negotiate an extension of the ceasefire connected to the US-Israeli onslaught against Iran, with Tehran aiming to halt the hostilities in Lebanon as part of any larger agreement. 

On Tuesday, two Iranian news outlets reported that Tehran had halted discussions with mediators attempting to arrange a ceasefire. 

The following day, Hezbollah announced a series of rocket and drone strikes aimed at Israeli military personnel and vehicles in southern Lebanon, including an attack on an armored vehicle near the town of Zawtar al-Sharqiya. 

Mahmoud Qomati, a senior official from Hezbollah, stated on Tuesday, "We will not agree to a partial ceasefire," further noting, "The Zionist enemy must understand that any aggression towards the suburbs might provoke a stronger and more intense response" from their group. 

Hezbollah has opposed the Lebanese government's involvement in direct negotiations with Israel and has rejected demands to disarm, emphasizing that giving up their weapons would facilitate Israeli efforts to fully occupy Lebanon. 

These discussions are happening just days after Israeli ground troops executed their most extensive incursion into Lebanon in 26 years. Israel later warned of potential strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, causing panic in the capital and leading to the evacuation of thousands of its residents. 

The UN on Tuesday urged "maximum restraint" as peacekeepers in Lebanon continued to observe intense military activity by Israel in southern Lebanon despite efforts to de-escalate tensions.

"Despite ongoing de-escalation efforts, our UNIFIL colleagues in the south continue to observe intense air activity and exchange of fire across the Blue Line and within UNIFIL's own area of operations, as stressed during the Emergency Security Council session yesterday," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said at a news conference.

"We call on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and fully adhere to the cessation of hostilities that was agreed to," he said.

Dujarric noted that the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) recorded 478 projectile trajectories between midnight and 4 pm local time, including 468 attributed to Israeli forces and 10 to Hezbollah.

The mission also documented nine Israeli airstrikes and 46 violations of Lebanese airspace during the same period, he said.

Since March 2, Israeli attacks have resulted in the deaths of 3,468 people and left thousands injured in Lebanon, displacing over one million individuals.

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