Israel Kills Senior Hezbollah Terrorist, Two Members in South Lebanon

The Lebanese health ministry said three people were killed in strikes in the Yater, Safad Al-Battikh and Jwaya areas of the south.

The Israeli army said on Sunday evening that it had "struck and eliminated Zakaria Yahya al-Hajj, a senior" Hezbollah figure in the Jwaya area.

"As part of his role, he activated (Hezbollah) agents within Lebanon's security" services, the military said.

In an earlier statement, the army said it had "struck and eliminated two Hezbollah" members in the Yater and Bint Jbeil areas "within less than an hour".

Despite a November 2024 ceasefire that was supposed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel has kept up strikes on Lebanon and has also maintained troops in five southern areas it deems strategic.

Israel says the strikes target Hezbollah members and infrastructure, and aim to stop the group from rearming.

The only diplomatic contact between Israel and Lebanon is through a ceasefire monitoring mechanism, which includes the United States, France and the United Nations.

The mechanism's next round of talks will be on December 19.

On Saturday, the Israeli army said it had "temporarily" suspended a planned strike on a building in Yanuh that it described as Hezbollah infrastructure.

According to the ceasefire, Hezbollah was required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the border with Israel, and have its military infrastructure in the vacated area dismantled.

Under a government-approved plan, Lebanon's army is to conduct the dismantling south of the Litani by the end of the year, before tackling Hezbollah's weapons in the rest of the country.

In a televised speech Saturday, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem, who has repeatedly rejected attempts to disarm the group, said "disarmament will not achieve Israel's goal" of ending resistance, "even if the whole world unites against Lebanon".