At least 10 people have been killed and 50 wounded in an Israeli strike in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, Reuters reported, citing two security sources. The agency noted that this comes after the Israeli army said it had carried out strikes on sites of the Lebanese Shiite movement "Hezbollah" in the Baalbek area.
The strikes are among the deadliest recorded in eastern Lebanon in recent weeks and risk testing the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, signed in late November 2024, the implementation of which has been in question as both sides accuse each other of violating it.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they had struck Hezbollah command centers in the Baalbek area, part of the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. Hezbollah have not yet commented on what happened.
According to sources, a high-ranking representative of the Lebanese armed group was among the dead.
At the end of November 2024, Israel and "Hezbollah" announced a ceasefire with the mediation of the United States in order to end the exchange of blows across the border that had lasted for more than a year. Since then, the two sides have traded accusations of violating the ceasefire.
American and Israeli officials have been pressuring Lebanese authorities to curb Hezbollah's arsenal, while Lebanese leaders have warned that broader Israeli strikes could further destabilize a country already rocked by a political and economic crisis, Reuters notes.
Earlier today, the Israeli military said a drone had struck what the IDF described as a Hamas command center from which militants were operating in the Ain al-Hilweh area of southern Lebanon. At least one person was killed in the attack.
Ain al-Hilweh is the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon and is home to about 80,000 people, most of whom are refugees from the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and their descendants. There are 12 Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon.
The Palestinian armed group "Hamas" condemned Israel's actions against Ain al-Hilweh and rejected Israeli claims about the target of the strikes, saying the site belonged to the joint security forces in the camp, tasked with maintaining security.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam stressed that the country's constitution guarantees full legal and political equality among citizens, warning that the distribution of religious affiliation in political and administrative appointments undermines this principle, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) reported.
Speaking at the conference on "Citizenship, State Sovereignty and Future Perspectives", Salam highlighted the contradictions between the constitutional provisions and the reality of religious quotas in senior government positions and public administration.
Salam noted that while Articles 7 and 12 affirm equality and merit-based appointments, the implementation of Article 95 expanded religious distribution beyond first-tier positions, which affected the effectiveness and concept of equal citizenship.
Furthermore, Salam stated that religious distribution had harmed the functioning of the state and weakened the trust of citizens, calling for a balanced approach that preserved communal identities while strengthening individual civil rights.
The Prime Minister then proposed a review of constitutional reforms, including the bicameral system provided for in Article 22, limiting religious representation to the Senate and freeing the Parliament from religious restrictions.
Salam concluded that the citizenship crisis in Lebanon stems from the incomplete political recognition of individuals outside of their religious affiliation, stressing that addressing this issue is essential for building a just and strong state.