2 Dead in Lebanon Strike Israel Says Targeted Hezbollah Operative

Lebanese security forces inspect a destroyed car targeted in an Israeli drone attack in the southern Lebanese village of Zebdine, on September 6, 2025. (AFP)
Lebanese security forces inspect a destroyed car targeted in an Israeli drone attack in the southern Lebanese village of Zebdine, on September 6, 2025. (AFP)
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2 Dead in Lebanon Strike Israel Says Targeted Hezbollah Operative

Lebanese security forces inspect a destroyed car targeted in an Israeli drone attack in the southern Lebanese village of Zebdine, on September 6, 2025. (AFP)
Lebanese security forces inspect a destroyed car targeted in an Israeli drone attack in the southern Lebanese village of Zebdine, on September 6, 2025. (AFP)

An Israeli strike in Lebanon on Monday killed two people, including a survivor of Israel's deadly pager attack last year, state media reported, while Israel's military said it targeted a Hezbollah operative.

Israel has kept up attacks on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah, despite a November ceasefire following more than a year of hostilities with the Iran-backed Lebanese group.

It also maintains troops in five areas of southern Lebanon it considers strategic.

On Monday, the Israeli military said it killed Hassan Atwi, who it described as "a key terrorist in Hezbollah's aerial defense unit in the Nabatiyeh area".

His wife Zainab Raslan, who was driving, was also killed, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.

The Israeli military alleged Atwi had "led the reestablishment and rearmament efforts" of the unit and "maintained contact with and purchased equipment from the unit's leaders in Iran".

Atwi was wounded and lost his sight when Israel blew up hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah members in Lebanon last year, according to NNA.

The Lebanese health ministry also reported Monday's attack.

It said two people were killed and one wounded when "an Israeli drone strike targeted a car on the Zebdine road in the Nabatiyeh district" of southern Lebanon.

The Israeli military also said it had struck "military compounds... used by Hezbollah for training" in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa area, while the NNA reported "two air strikes" in northeastern Hermel province.

The United Nations said last week it had verified the deaths of 103 civilians in Lebanon since the November truce, demanding a halt to the ongoing suffering.

Hezbollah, which was severely weakened by the war, faces a push to give up its arsenal.

The Lebanese government, under intense US and Israeli pressure, is set to discuss on Monday the army's first monthly report on its plan to disarm the group.



Lebanon President Vows to Prosecute Those Who Attacked French UN Peacekeepers

A UNIFIL convoy rides through the town, as seen through the window of a vehicle, in Tyre, south Lebanon, April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
A UNIFIL convoy rides through the town, as seen through the window of a vehicle, in Tyre, south Lebanon, April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
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Lebanon President Vows to Prosecute Those Who Attacked French UN Peacekeepers

A UNIFIL convoy rides through the town, as seen through the window of a vehicle, in Tyre, south Lebanon, April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
A UNIFIL convoy rides through the town, as seen through the window of a vehicle, in Tyre, south Lebanon, April 15, 2026. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun vowed on Saturday to prosecute those who targeted French UN peacekeepers, killing one and wounding three.

In a statement shared by the presidency, Aoun expressed his condolences to his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in a phone call, condemning the incident and vowing that Beirut "will not hesitate to pursue those involved and bring them to justice".

UNIFIL on Saturday also condemned what it described as a "deliberate attack on peacekeepers" after small-arms fire by non-state group actors killed one peacekeeper and injured three others as they were clearing explosive ordnance in southern Lebanon.

"UNIFIL has launched an in investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident. Initial assessment indicates the fire came from non-state actors (allegedly Hezbollah)", UNIFIL said in a statement.


Hezbollah Official Says Lebanon-Israel Talks 'Do Not Concern Us'

A Hezbollah flag is displayed from a car window, next to a dog, as displaced people make their way to return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, April 18, 2026. REUTERS/Aziz Taher
A Hezbollah flag is displayed from a car window, next to a dog, as displaced people make their way to return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, April 18, 2026. REUTERS/Aziz Taher
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Hezbollah Official Says Lebanon-Israel Talks 'Do Not Concern Us'

A Hezbollah flag is displayed from a car window, next to a dog, as displaced people make their way to return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, April 18, 2026. REUTERS/Aziz Taher
A Hezbollah flag is displayed from a car window, next to a dog, as displaced people make their way to return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, April 18, 2026. REUTERS/Aziz Taher

Senior Hezbollah official Mahmud Qamati said on Saturday that his group was not concerned by Lebanon's planned direct talks with Israel, labelling them a failure, Reuters reported.

In a press conference in Beirut's southern suburbs, Qamati said his group was "not concerned with the negotiations being conducted by the state", saying they were "a failure, weak, defeated... and submissive negotiations".

"The resistance is the one that imposes. We are the land... and we are the ones who draw up the decisions, not those who have an official status," he said, adding that while his group did not mind Beirut "coordinating with us... not in this way that leads to surrender".


Abdelatty: Egypt Working with Pakistan on Lasting US-Iran Peace Plan

This handout photograph taken and released by Turkish Foreign Ministry on April 17, 2026, shows Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (2nd R), Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud (R), Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty (L) and Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar (2nd L) poses family photo during the 5th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya. (Photo by Turkish Foreign Ministery Press Service / TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by Turkish Foreign Ministry on April 17, 2026, shows Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (2nd R), Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud (R), Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty (L) and Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar (2nd L) poses family photo during the 5th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya. (Photo by Turkish Foreign Ministery Press Service / TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)
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Abdelatty: Egypt Working with Pakistan on Lasting US-Iran Peace Plan

This handout photograph taken and released by Turkish Foreign Ministry on April 17, 2026, shows Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (2nd R), Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud (R), Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty (L) and Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar (2nd L) poses family photo during the 5th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya. (Photo by Turkish Foreign Ministery Press Service / TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by Turkish Foreign Ministry on April 17, 2026, shows Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (2nd R), Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud (R), Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty (L) and Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar (2nd L) poses family photo during the 5th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya. (Photo by Turkish Foreign Ministery Press Service / TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)

Egypt is working closely with Pakistan on a framework aimed at securing a lasting peace between the US and Iran, ⁠Foreign Minister Badr ⁠Abdelatty said on Saturday.

He said Egypt, Türkiye, Pakistan and ⁠Saudi Arabia were coordinating a broader regional effort focused on preventing renewed escalation and laying the groundwork for a post-war security arrangement, stressing ⁠the ⁠importance of protecting Gulf states and stabilizing energy markets, supply chains and food security.

Abdelatty’s statement came as Iran has swiftly reversed course on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, reimposing restrictions on the critical waterway on Saturday after US President Donald Trump said that even after Tehran announced the strait's reopening on Friday, the American blockade “will remain in full force” until the country reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear program.

The conflict over the chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy after oil prices began to fall again on Friday on hopes the US and Iran were drawing closer to an agreement.