Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Promises to Target Hezbollah Relentlessly

Lebanon: An Israeli airstrike struck an apartment building in northern Lebanon on Monday, resulting in the deaths of at least 21 individuals, according to the Lebanese Red Cross.

The Israeli military has yet to issue a statement regarding the strike, and the specific target remains unclear. The attack impacted a small apartment structure in the village of Aito, situated in the northern region of Lebanon, which is predominantly Christian and far removed from Hezbollah’s main strongholds in the south and east.

Rescue teams in Aito are currently sifting through the debris of the collapsed building, while ambulances are on standby to transport the victims’ bodies. The strike also caused damage to nearby buildings and vehicles.

This incident follows a deadly Hezbollah drone attack on an Israeli army base the previous day, which claimed the lives of four soldiers, all aged 19, and left seven others critically injured. This marked the most lethal assault by Hezbollah since Israel initiated its ground invasion of Lebanon nearly two weeks ago.

On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the army base and met with the injured soldiers, asserting, “We will continue to strike Hezbollah without compassion in every part of Lebanon, including Beirut.” Sixty-one individuals were reported wounded in the Sunday attack.

Over the past year, Hezbollah has launched thousands of rockets, missiles, and drones at Israel, resulting in more than 60 fatalities, although Israeli officials claim that the majority of these attacks have been intercepted by their air defense systems or have hit uninhabited areas.

In Lebanon, approximately 2,300 individuals have died from Israeli airstrikes since last October, as reported by the country’s Health Ministry, with over three-quarters of these casualties occurring in the last month.

Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, has vowed to persist in its assaults on Israel until a ceasefire is established in Gaza. Israel maintains that its operations against Hezbollah are focused on halting these attacks to allow displaced Israelis to safely return to their homes near the Lebanese border.

Earlier on Monday, an Israeli airstrike on a hospital courtyard in the Gaza Strip resulted in at least four fatalities and ignited a fire that engulfed a tent camp for those displaced by the ongoing conflict, leaving more than two dozen people with severe burns.

The Israeli military stated that the airstrike targeted militants hiding among civilians but did not provide any supporting evidence.