Israeli strikes in Lebanon kill at least 10, including senior Hezbollah official

Feb 20 (Reuters) – At least 10 people were killed and 50 wounded in Israeli strikes in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley on Friday, two security sources told Reuters, after the Israeli military said it had targeted Hezbollah sites in the Baalbek area.

The strikes are among the deadliest reported in eastern Lebanon in recent weeks and risk testing a fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Shi’ite Islamist group Hezbollah, which has been strained by recurring accusations of violations.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it struck Hezbollah command centres in the Baalbek area, part of eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.

A senior Hezbollah official was among the dead, the sources said.

There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah.

Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in 2024 intended to end more than a year of cross-border fire that culminated in Israeli strikes that weakened the Iran-aligned group. Since then, the sides have traded accusations of ceasefire violations.

U.S. and Israeli officials have pressed Lebanese authorities to curb Hezbollah’s arsenal, while Lebanese leaders have warned that broader Israeli strikes could further destabilize the country already battered by political and economic crises.

Separately, the Israeli military said it also struck what it described as a Hamas command centre from which militants operated in the Ain al-Hilweh area in southern Lebanon. Ain al-Hilweh is a crowded Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon.

Hamas condemned in a statement the Israeli strike on Ain al-Hilweh and rejected Israeli assertions about the target, saying the site belonged to the camp’s Joint Security Force tasked with maintaining security.

(Reporting by Laila Bassam and Enas Alashray; Editing by Rod Nickel and Rosalba O’Brien)