Israeli strikes kill 18 in Lebanon, missile fragments hit Israeli air base

Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon killed at least 18 people and injured several others on Wednesday, according to Lebanon's National News Agency, civil defense and health authorities, reported Xinhua.

The deadliest attack occurred in Tyre District's town of Tayr Debba, killing nine people and injuring seven others, according to a preliminary toll.

Hezbollah said Wednesday that it targeted gatherings of Israeli troops and vehicles in southern Lebanon's Qantara and Bayada.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said Wednesday it struck Hezbollah infrastructure sites and killed Hezbollah militants in Tyre and other areas in southern Lebanon over the past 24 hours. It also confirmed that Hezbollah launched a drone toward Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon during the day, which it said was intercepted.

Separately, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Wednesday that he will pursue negotiations "until the end," and that diplomacy offers the best path to restore Lebanon's sovereignty, read a presidency statement.

"Wars achieve no results other than losses shared by everyone," he said, calling for an end to Israeli attacks and withdrawal of Israeli forces, among others, and saying no to foreign interference in Lebanon's internal affairs.

Also on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video message addressed to the Lebanese people, asking them to join Israel against Hezbollah.

He claimed that Israel has killed nearly 10,000 Hezbollah militants, adding, "no matter where they are, we'll find them."

The developments came after a brief Israel-Iran flare-up triggered by Israeli airstrikes on Beirut on Sunday. Despite a ceasefire reached by Israel and Lebanon in mid-April, Israel has continued near-daily strikes in Lebanon claiming targeting Hezbollah positions and weapons, while Hezbollah has launched attacks on Israeli military positions.

Lebanon's Public Health Emergency Operations Center said Wednesday that Israeli attacks since March 2 have killed 3,696 people in Lebanon and injured 11,413 others.

Meanwhile, the Ramat David Air Base in northern Israel was hit by missile fragments during the latest escalation with Iran, the Israeli military confirmed Wednesday, reported Xinhua.

The hit caused minor damage to the base but did not disrupt flight operations, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) official told Israel's state-owned Army Radio.

Previously, Israeli media reports, citing satellite imagery, have said that the key Israeli military base appeared to have been hit.

Israeli airstrikes on the southern suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut on Sunday, which killed at least two people and injured about 20 others, triggered a series of mutual attacks between Iran and Israel from Sunday night into Monday, marking the most serious escalation since a ceasefire between Iran, the United States and Israel in April.

Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps announced late Sunday that it launched ballistic missiles at the Ramat David Air Base in response to Israel's "widespread crimes" in Lebanon, which the IDF did not comment on back then.

Later on Monday, Iran and Israel signaled a halt to their attacks against each other. Still, Israel has warned that it would strike Beirut in response to any attack on northern Israel and continue attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon, whereas Iran has cautioned that any further Israeli attack on Iran or Lebanon would trigger a much more "severe and crushing" response from Tehran.