Israel Says it Targeted Hezbollah Sites in Lebanon, 2 Dead

People stand amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israel's ground and air offensive after returning to the southern Lebanese village of Aita al Shaab as on January 28, 2025. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)
People stand amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israel's ground and air offensive after returning to the southern Lebanese village of Aita al Shaab as on January 28, 2025. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)
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Israel Says it Targeted Hezbollah Sites in Lebanon, 2 Dead

People stand amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israel's ground and air offensive after returning to the southern Lebanese village of Aita al Shaab as on January 28, 2025. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)
People stand amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israel's ground and air offensive after returning to the southern Lebanese village of Aita al Shaab as on January 28, 2025. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)

The Israeli military said on Friday it struck several Hezbollah targets overnight in the Bekaa Valley and along the Syrian-Lebanese border.

The army said the targets include a facility used for underground weapons development and another associated with the smuggling of arms into Lebanon.

Two people were killed and 10 others were wounded in an Israeli strike on an unofficial border crossing in eastern Lebanon early Friday morning, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said.

Lebanon’s state news agency said Israel launched four strikes on the Janta border crossing in the eastern province of Baalbeck, while two other strikes targeted two illegal Syria-Lebanon border crossings in northern Lebanon late Thursday and early Friday.

On Thursday, Israel said it intercepted a surveillance drone launched by Hezbollah calling it "a breach of the ceasefire agreement" between Israel and Lebanon.

Hezbollah and Israel reached a ceasefire in late November, ending a deadly conflict that began with the Gaza war in 2023. The US confirmed on Sunday that the agreement, which includes a 60-day period for Israeli troop withdrawal, will remain in effect until Feb. 18, extending the original Jan. 26 deadline.

Israel has carried out multiple strikes on Lebanese territory since the ceasefire extension, killing and injuring more than 100 people.

In a statement, Hezbollah legislator Ibrahim Moussawi called Friday's strikes a very dangerous violation and a blatant and explicit aggression,” adding that “the Lebanese state, represented by the presidency, the government and the army, is required to take immediate action.”



Hamas Hands Over Four Hostage Bodies to Red Cross as Palestinians Leave Israeli Prison

Among those leaving Israel early Thursday were 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman who were all arrested after the Hamas attack - AFP
Among those leaving Israel early Thursday were 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman who were all arrested after the Hamas attack - AFP
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Hamas Hands Over Four Hostage Bodies to Red Cross as Palestinians Leave Israeli Prison

Among those leaving Israel early Thursday were 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman who were all arrested after the Hamas attack - AFP
Among those leaving Israel early Thursday were 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman who were all arrested after the Hamas attack - AFP

An Israeli security official told AFP on Thursday that Hamas had handed over four bodies to the Red Cross, while a senior leader from the Palestinian movement said the bodies belonged to Israeli hostages.

"Four bodies transferred to the Red Cross from Hamas," the official said.

"The four bodies were handed over a short while ago and we are waiting for the release of Palestinian prisoners," the Hamas official said, referring to the remains of the hostages.

According to Reuters, a Red Cross convoy carrying dozens of released Palestinian prisoners left Israel’s Ofer prison. Crowds of cheering families, friends and supporters of Palestinian prisoners were gathered in Beitunia jostling for a glimpse of the bus that was on its way.
Israel had delayed the release of over 600 Palestinian prisoners since Saturday to protest what it called the cruel treatment of hostages during their handover by Hamas. The militant group has called the delay a “serious violation” of the ceasefire and said talks on a second phase aren’t possible until the Palestinians are freed.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office had said Wednesday that the release of the bodies would be carried out without a ceremony, as opposed to past Hamas releases with stage-managed events in front of crowds. Israel, along with the Red Cross and UN officials, have called the ceremonies humiliating for the hostages.
Among those leaving Israel early Thursday were hundreds of detainees arrested from Gaza, held on suspicion of militancy after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, without charge for months. They include 445 men, 21 teenagers and one woman who were all arrested after the Hamas attack, according to lists shared by Palestinian officials that did not specify their ages.
Only around 50 Palestinians were being released into the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem in this round. Dozens sentenced to life over deadly attacks against Israelis will be exiled out of the Palestinian territories, taken to Egypt at least temporarily until other countries accept them.
The handover will complete both sides’ obligations under the ceasefire’s first phase, during which Hamas returned 33 hostages, including eight bodies, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.