Israeli strikes have killed at least 2,267 people and injured 11,022 more in Lebanon since Israel stepped up its campaign against Hezbollah in mid-September, according to a CNN tally of Lebanese health ministry statements.
The ministry’s latest report on Friday included 52 deaths and 72 injuries from strikes in Lebanon’s Baalbek-Hermel region, affecting residents across 14 villages in the country’s southern and eastern areas.
Israel’s military said on Friday it had struck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and the capital Beirut.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said “numerous” precautions were taken before the strikes to minimize risks to civilians, including issuing advance warnings to residents in targeted areas. However, a CNN reporter found that many of the areas where casualties occurred on Friday had not received warnings through the usual channels, including the X and Telegram accounts of the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson.
The IDF also reiterated Israeli concerns that Hezbollah has embedded its weapons and military facilities within civilian-populated areas across Lebanon. It says the militant group has used these positions to launch recent attacks against Israel, including rocket strikes that killed seven civilians in the country on Thursday, according to Israeli officials.
Earlier on Thursday, Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes targeted 40 hospitals, 84 medical and ambulance centers, and a total of 243 medical facilities, killing 178 medical staff members since October last year.
