Israeli airstrikes hit Eastern Lebanon: 30+ casualties reported
Shafaq News- Baalbek (Updated at 24:39)
More than ten people were killed and around 45 others injured after Israeli warplanes carried out multiple airstrikes on eastern Lebanon on Friday, targeting areas in and around Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley, local media reported on Friday.
According to Lebanese official media, three raids struck the Al-Shaara area at the foothills of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range along the Lebanon-Syria border, while two others hit the plains of Qsarnaba and Tamnine al-Tahta, west of the city. Israeli aircraft remained in the area following the attacks.
One strike destroyed a building near Al-Qard Al-Hasan, a Hezbollah-affiliated financial association, on the Riyaq–Baalbek highway.
In a statement, the Israeli military said it targeted what it described as Hezbollah facilities in the Baalbek area, accusing Hezbollah of embedding its assets within civilian communities —a claim Israeli officials have repeatedly cited to justify strikes in populated areas.
#عاجل ‼️ جيش الدفاع الإسرائيلي يهاجم مقرات تابعة لمنظمة حزب الله الإرهابية في منطقة بعلبك بلبنان🟡 أغار جيش الدفاع الإسرائيلي قبل قليل في منطقة بعلبك بلبنان على مقرات تابعة لمنظمة حزب الله الإرهابية، كانت تستخدم من قبل مخربي المنظمة لدفع مخططات إرهابية ضد قوات جيش الدفاع…
— Lieutenant Colonel Ella Waweya | إيلا واوية (@CaptainElla1) February 20, 2026
Hezbollah has not issued an immediate response.
Earlier today, an Israeli drone strike targeted the Hittin neighborhood inside the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in Saida, southern Lebanon, killing two Palestinian civilians and injuring three others.
Despite a US-brokered ceasefire reached on November 27, 2024, Israeli forces have continued operations in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as in Beirut’s southern suburbs. The UN peacekeeping mission, UNIFIL, has recorded more than 10,000 Israeli violations since the truce, while Lebanon’s Health Ministry reports around 340 deaths and over 970 injuries during the same period, including women and children.
