Israeli airstrikes killed 11 people in south-eastern Lebanon, the Health Ministry in Beirut reported on Tuesday, as fears mounted of a further escalation between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The Lebanese Health Ministry said the attacks on the town of Mashghara in the south-eastern Bekaa Valley took place late on Monday evening. Two underage girls and a woman were reported among the dead, while a further 15 people, including a child, were injured. The ministry said rescue operations in the town were ongoing.
The state news agency NNA had previously reported that 12 people had been killed in the attack.
Further strikes were reported overnight and into Tuesday morning, mainly in southern Lebanon, according to NNA. Local media reported dozens of attacks across several areas in the south of the country.
The Israeli military said it had struck "more than 100 Hezbollah infrastructure sites and terrorists" in the Bekaa Valley and across southern Lebanon. It said a "Hezbollah weapons storage facility" was among the targets hit in the Bekaa Valley.
In one strike in the area of Mashghara in the south, the Israeli military said "terrorists were eliminated." Hezbollah did not initially comment.
The Lebanese Health Ministry also said a paramedic had been killed in an attack in the south of the country, while two further medical workers from the Risala health service - which is close to Hezbollah - were injured. The Israeli military said it was investigating the report.
At around midday (0900 GMT), the Israeli military also issued a call for residents of the city of Nabatieh, located in the south of the country, to flee. Such calls are typically followed by airstrikes.
Nabatieh is one of the most important cities in southern Lebanon and has already suffered extensive destruction in the course of the war, but Tuesday marked the first time that the Israeli military has specifically called on the residents of the entire city to evacuate.
Hassan Wazni, head of the Nabih Berri Governmental University Hospital in Nabatieh, told dpa that this is one of "the harshest warnings for the city."
He stressed that staff would keep working but said the Red Cross is evacuating people who wish to leave.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had announced on Monday evening that he would step up attacks against Hezbollah.
Numerous residents from the southern suburbs of the capital Beirut left their homes during the night out of fear of Israeli attacks. Hezbollah has a strong presence in that area.
Israeli attacks had already intensified significantly on Monday, according to a tally by Lebanese news site L’Orient Today. Israeli warplanes carried out 76 airstrikes on 44 targets across Lebanon, while another 15 drone strikes and artillery attacks targeted 25 locations, the report said.
Conflict tied to Iran war
In mid-March, shortly after the United States and Israel attacked Iran, Hezbollah attacked Israel, and Israel retaliated. In mid-April, the Israeli and Lebanese governments agreed to a ceasefire. The Lebanese government is not a party to the conflict and Hezbollah did not sign the agreement.
The Iran-backed Shiite militia rejects negotiations with Israel. Since the ceasefire, attacks have continued from both sides. In Lebanon, almost 3,200 deaths have been reported since early March.
Observers fear that a further intensification of the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon could also make it harder to conclude the ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran on ending the war.
Tehran insists that the proposed framework agreement must cover both the war with the US and Israel, and Israel's conflict with Hezbollah.
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