GAZA CITY / BEIRUT (Agencies) – Israeli airstrikes on Saturday killed at least 11 people in the Gaza Strip and 20 more in Lebanon, officials in both territories said, as fragile ceasefire agreements showed new signs of strain.
In Gaza City, health officials and civil defence crews reported that an overnight strike on an apartment building in the Sabra neighbourhood killed four members of the Al-Safadi family — a husband, wife, and their two daughters. Twelve others were injured.
“Around 2 o’clock, my cousins were asleep when a missile struck them. They have no connection to Hamas, nor are they involved in anything. They’re just innocent children,” relative Nael al-Safadi said.
Footage from the scene showed an exterior wall of the apartment blown off, with rubble, clothes, and mattresses scattered through the interior.
“I’m a civilian. I swear to God I’ve never carried a weapon or fired one. What do you want from me? Go after whoever you’re after, what’s my fault in this?” survivor Mohammad al-Safadi told AFP.
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Al-Shifa hospital confirmed it received the bodies of the four family members, including the two children. The hospital also reported receiving one body after a separate Israeli drone strike near an intersection in northern Gaza City.
Later Saturday, six more people were killed in other strikes across the enclave, the civil defence agency said. Three died when an aircraft hit a house in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Among them was Ahmed Wishah, a cameraman for Al Jazeera. The network condemned what it called “the continuation of these crimes” against its journalists.
The Israeli military said Wishah was a “Hamas terrorist” and did not immediately comment on the other reported deaths.
Gaza’s health ministry said at least 1,012 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since a ceasefire took effect on October 10 last year. The Israeli army has reported five military deaths in the same period. Hamas has accused Israel of daily truce violations as efforts to secure a permanent halt to fighting remain stalled.
Lebanon front sees renewed strikes
In Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes and drones struck multiple locations in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley on Saturday, killing at least 20 people. The strikes came one day after a separate ceasefire with Hezbollah took effect.
Hezbollah accused Israel of “hundreds of blatant ceasefire violations” and warned that the “continued Israeli aggression will not pass without a response.” The group said Israel bears sole responsibility for the escalation and urged the US to pressure Israel to halt attacks and comply with diplomatic agreements.
Among the deadliest strikes was one that destroyed a three-story residential building in the town of Barish, in the Tyre district, killing a father, mother, and their two young children, a local official said. The Lebanese military also confirmed that a soldier was killed in an Israeli strike on the Kfarrumman-Nabatieh road.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 4,057 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since March 2, including medics, women, and children. Israeli authorities report at least 32 soldiers and four civilians killed in the same timeframe.
An Israeli military official said Hezbollah launched more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon and called the actions repeated ceasefire violations. The official said Israel would respond to any attacks while noting that Israeli troops remain in parts of southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah said its fighters engaged Israeli troops attempting to infiltrate the Ali al-Taher hill area overnight, after which Israel carried out sweeping airstrikes. A senior Hezbollah official said the group would not allow Israel “freedom of movement” in Lebanese territory and that resistance remains legitimate while Israeli forces are present.
Diplomatic pressure mounts
Late Saturday, an Israeli army official said the military had received directives from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz to cease fire in southern Lebanon. However, Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported that leaders had refused to withdraw troops from areas they captured in Lebanon.
The renewed violence comes as diplomats from several countries met in Switzerland over the weekend to maintain dialogue on a preliminary US-Iran understanding aimed at halting wider Middle East hostilities. The understanding calls for an immediate and permanent halt to military operations by the parties and their allies across several fronts, including Lebanon.
Both ceasefires remain formally in place, but Saturday’s casualties have underscored their fragility and the challenges facing mediators seeking a lasting de-escalation.
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