Jerusalem: Israeli airstrikes on the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Rumman killed at least nine people, including women and a child, and wounded 13 others, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, as tensions between Israel and Hezbollah continue despite a truce.

Israeli airstrikes on the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Rumman early Monday killed at least nine people and wounded 13 others, including women and children, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said.

The ministry said one strike hit a building, killing eight people, including a child and two women. Eleven people were wounded in the attack, including four children and two women. A second strike targeted a car and killed a paramedic associated with the Lebanese Islamic Risala Scout Association, while two others were wounded.

The strikes came amid renewed escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, despite a US-brokered truce that has repeatedly been violated by both sides. Israel has continued carrying out airstrikes in Lebanon, while Hezbollah has launched drone attacks at Israeli troops.

Strikes hit residential area

Residents of Kfar Rumman described the impact of the strikes on the village. Fouad Chakaron said residents had already been living with anxiety because of shelling around the outskirts before the latest attacks reached the centre of the town.

Another resident, Saleh Medlej, said families with children lived in the destroyed building and questioned why it had been targeted.

Earlier on Monday, Israel’s military issued an evacuation warning for a home in nearby Deir al-Zahrani. A building was subsequently struck. The Israeli military said the attack was carried out in response to a Hezbollah drone attack. No casualties were immediately reported from that strike.

Escalation continues despite truce

The latest attacks follow Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on Sunday that reportedly killed at least seven people and destroyed an empty hospital.

The violence comes more than two months after the latest truce between Israel and Hezbollah. The ceasefire has failed to prevent continued military action, with Israel citing security threats from Hezbollah and the group continuing to oppose Israeli military activity in Lebanon.

Israel’s military has also said it is in “operational control” of the strategic Ali Taher hill, which overlooks several southern Lebanese villages and important roads leading towards Nabatiyeh.

Lebanon and Israel signed a US-mediated framework agreement in June aimed at reducing tensions and addressing the continued presence of Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. Under the framework, Israeli forces are expected to withdraw from southern Lebanon in exchange for Hezbollah’s disarmament.

Implementation has made little progress.

Hezbollah has rejected demands to surrender its weapons north of the Litani River, while Israeli officials have said they will not withdraw unless Hezbollah is disarmed across Lebanon.

The latest casualties in Kfar Rumman therefore come against the backdrop of a wider dispute over the future security arrangement in southern Lebanon and the unresolved question of Hezbollah’s weapons.

The continued strikes highlight the fragility of the ceasefire framework and the difficulty of translating the Israel-Lebanon agreement into a lasting reduction in violence.

Kfar Rumman’s mayor, Abdullah Farhat, described the latest incident as a “massacre in every sense of the word” and criticised Lebanese leaders over the framework agreement, saying civilians were paying the price for the continuing confrontation.

With Israeli forces maintaining positions in strategic areas and Hezbollah refusing to surrender its weapons under the current terms, the risk of further violence in southern Lebanon remains high.