The death toll from Israel’s latest war on Hezbollah in Lebanon rose to 6,000 after medics were able to retrieve the bodies of the deceased from under the rubble in border villages in southern Lebanon.
The retrieval wasn’t possible sooner because Israel was still occupying some of the border regions.
A ceasefire in the fighting had been declared on November 27. Several Hezbollah fighters were still among the missing and their bodies couldn’t be retrieved for the past 80 days because Israel kept its forces in the areas where they were killed. Medical teams were barred from entering those regions.
Mohammad Chamseddine, a researcher at Information International, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the latest figures showed that over 6,000 people were killed in Lebanon during the war.
The figure covers the beginning of the conflict on October 8, 2023 when Hezbollah launched its “support front” in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza.
The number covers civilians and fighters killed, added Chamseddine.
Lebanese sources following the retrieval of the bodies said that DNA tests were performed on remains that were uncovered.
They told Asharq Al-Awsat that more people remain unaccounted for and they will continue to be labeled “missing” until they are found.
Israel’s pullout from a number of border villages and towns on February 18 allowed Hezbollah to carry out the funerals of the newly discovered bodies.
On Friday, it held the funeral of 130 fighters and civilians in the towns of Aitaroun and Aita al-Shaab. The funeral was the largest since Israel’s withdrawal.
Speaking at the funeral, Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah said: “These martyrs paid their lives in defending the nation, the South and the Palestinians.”
“We have paid heavy prices and given sacrifices for our nation and dignity,” he added.
“We have entrusted the state with the responsibility of ending the Israeli occupation,” he went on to say.
