Israel Bombs Tyre in Lebanon After Evacuation Orders, Army Announces Death of Soldier

SadaNews - The Israeli army announced the start of bombing what it described as Hezbollah's infrastructure in the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon, while announcing the death of a soldier and injuries to others due to a drone attack it claimed the party launched on Wednesday.

The Israeli army urged the residents of Tyre to evacuate immediately and head north of the Zahrani River, in preparation for airstrikes on the city.

Al Jazeera's correspondent in Lebanon reported that the Israeli army launched two airstrikes on targets in the city of Tyre on Thursday morning, coinciding with additional drone strikes in the residential area surrounding the city.

The Israeli army had issued evacuation orders for several buildings in the city of Tyre, indicating that it was "acting forcefully" against the party, following what it considered a "violation of the ceasefire agreement."

The army published a statement accompanied by maps in which several buildings were highlighted in red, demanding that residents evacuate them immediately, claiming they were close to sites used by Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese National News Agency reported that two batches of Israeli airstrikes were carried out on Tyre and its eastern surroundings on Thursday morning, noting that one of the strikes targeted a building, resulting in a fire breaking out in it.

In parallel, the occupation army intensified its airstrikes on several towns in southern Lebanon, resulting in the death of three people, including a soldier, on Wednesday, while Hezbollah announced targeting gatherings of the occupation army with drones in various areas of southern Lebanon.

In initial figures during the first days of Eid al-Adha, the occupation army carried out 44 airstrikes and a heavy artillery attack on various areas in southern Lebanon, the east, and border villages, leading to the destruction of dozens of residential buildings and commercial stores.

Intensive Aggression and Evacuation

Over the last two days, Israel has significantly escalated its aggression against Lebanon, following threats from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to intensify attacks on Lebanon and deliver what he termed harsh blows to Hezbollah.

The Israeli army issued an urgent warning on Wednesday to the residents of the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon and the camps and neighborhoods surrounding it, asking them to evacuate their homes and move north of the Zahrani River, located about 40 kilometers north of the Lebanese-Israeli border.

This is the first evacuation warning issued for this city since the ceasefire agreement took effect on April 17, and it comes amid increasing escalation as Israeli occupation forces cross the Litani River and approach the city of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon.

Israel killed 31 people and injured at least 40, while destroying dozens of homes in 152 attacks on southern and eastern Lebanon on Tuesday, in the most violent assaults since the ceasefire began.

The occupation army stated in a statement on Wednesday that it had carried out strikes on more than 150 targets in southern and eastern Lebanon over the last 24 hours.

Hezbollah Escalates

In contrast, Hezbollah stated that its members targeted a gathering of the Israeli occupation army in Al-Aouida hill and the Al-Ajl plateau, as well as in the vicinity of the towns of Adaisseh and Zoutr al-Sharqiyah in southern Lebanon with drones.

The party announced it conducted 30 operations on Wednesday against Israeli forces and vehicles, including 17 operations in the town of Zoutr al-Sharqiyah in the Nabatieh governorate in southern Lebanon, in addition to two operations against the Iron Dome site in northern Israel, achieving confirmed hits.

Hezbollah mentioned in separate statements that these operations were in response to the Israeli occupation army's violation of the ceasefire and assaults targeting villages in southern Lebanon that resulted in deaths and injuries.

The party added that its attacks come within the context of its resistance to the Israeli occupation army's incursion towards the town of Zoutr al-Sharqiyah in the Nabatieh governorate in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army announced on Thursday morning the death of a soldier and the injury of two others in a military operation north of Israel on Wednesday.

The Israeli army also reported on Wednesday that two soldiers were injured in southern Lebanon amid escalating military operations in the area between Israel, which carried out strikes on the city of Tyre and towns in the south and east, and Hezbollah, which shelled with rockets, mortars, and drones the positions of the occupation army in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army stated that two soldiers were injured after being targeted by an anti-tank missile in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah's attacks come amid the ongoing incursion of the occupation army in southern Lebanon, where it continues to demolish and blow up hundreds of homes and buildings, attacking Lebanese people it claims are members of Hezbollah.

Talks in Washington

This escalation comes after Israel vowed this week to deliver "harsh blows" to Hezbollah in Lebanon, coinciding with the preparations of Tel Aviv and Beirut to enter new talks in Washington, which will be initiated by two military delegations on Friday at the U.S. Department of Defense in Washington, and followed by a round of negotiations between representatives from both countries on June 2 and 3.

The Lebanese military delegation consists of 6 officers from various specialties, led by Brigadier General Georges Rizqallah, the operations director in the army. A military source told Agence France-Presse that the delegation "will emphasize the necessity of a ceasefire and present the army's plan to restrict weapons and impose state authority over Lebanese territories."

With the Israeli military escalation, Lebanon hopes to establish a ceasefire during the next round of negotiations.

Since March 2, Israel has been waging a wide-ranging aggression against Lebanon, resulting in 3,269 deaths and 9,840 injuries, in addition to more than one million displaced, according to official data up until Wednesday evening.

Israel occupies areas in southern Lebanon, some for decades and others since the previous war between 2023 and 2024, while it has penetrated about 10 kilometers into Lebanese southern territory during the current aggression.