UPDATE 2 - 1 Lebanese killed, 2 injured in new Israeli drone strike amid ceasefire violations

UPDATES WITH ISRAELI COMMENT

By Jomaa Younis and Betul Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – One person was killed and two others were injured in an Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon on Thursday, in the latest violation of a ceasefire agreement, the Health Ministry said.

A ministry statement said that a drone hit a motorcycle in al-Mansouri town of the Tyre district, causing the casualties.

The Israeli army claimed that the target of the attack was Muhammad Jamal Murad, whom it called a commander of Hezbollah’s artillery in southern Lebanon.

The army alleged that Murad was responsible for numerous rocket launches toward Israel and attempted to rebuild Hezbollah’s artillery capabilities in the south.

The Israeli army earlier said that its forces struck what it called a Hezbollah military command center in the Yohmor area in Nabatieh in an overnight strike.

There was no comment from Hezbollah on the Israeli claim.

Cross-border warfare between Israel and the Hezbollah group in Lebanon escalated into a full-scale war last September. Despite a November ceasefire, Israeli forces have carried out near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon, claiming to target Hezbollah activities.

Since then, Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 3,000 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of at least 236 people and injuries to more than 540.

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was supposed to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon by Jan. 26, but the deadline was extended to Feb. 18 after Tel Aviv refused to comply.

Until now, Israel still maintains a military presence at five border outposts.