Israeli strikes killed at least seven people in southern Lebanon on Thursday, a day after a wave of attacks that left more than 250 dead, according to Lebanese figures, raising fears that a fragile ceasefire could collapse as regional tensions escalate.
The escalation threatens a fragile Pakistan-brokered truce between the United States, Israel and Iran, which remains imperiled by a fundamental dispute over whether the agreement extends to Lebanon.
Upon announcing the ceasefire as a “diplomatic win,” Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday the agreement applied “everywhere, including Lebanon.” Iranian officials have also maintained the agreement applies “everywhere.”
On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed Hezbollah was excluded from the deal in a televised address Wednesday. This is despite main Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid declaring “Israel was not even at the table” during the negotiations.
US Vice President JD Vance said Iran’s demands reflected a “legitimate misunderstanding,” adding that Tehran appeared to believe Lebanon was covered by the truce when it was not.
The latest Israeli strikes in Lebanon hit multiple towns including Kafra, Jmaijmeh, Safad Al-Battikh, Majdal Selm, Haris and Deir Antar near the Qasmiyeh bridge, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. Israel said the attacks also killed the nephew and personal secretary of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem.
Hezbollah said on Thursday it responded by firing rockets into northern Israel and targeting an Israeli military vessel with an anti-ship missile, vowing to continue attacks until the Israeli aggression stops.
The escalation follows some of the deadliest bombardment since the war began, with at least 254 people killed and 1,165 wounded on Wednesday, while Iran warned it could re-enter the conflict.
Iranian Parliamentary Speaker Mohamed Bagher Ghalibaf issued a statement on X, accusing the US and Israel of breaching “three key clauses” of the agreement. Ghalibaf warned continued violations would lead to conditions where “a bilateral ceasefire or negotiations is unreasonable.”
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty condemned the “brutal Israeli aggression” in a call with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. “This is a dangerous escalation that threatens to expand the circle of conflict and undermine security and stability across the entire region,” Abdelatty said in a statement.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said continued Israeli strikes in Lebanon violate a key condition of Tehran’s proposed 10-point plan to end the war. Iran has again closed the Strait of Hormuz after briefly agreeing to reopen it.
According to a BBC report, ships in the Persian Gulf have received a warning that any attempts to cross the Strait of Hormuz without authorization will lead to their vessels being “targeted and destroyed.”
Free passage through the vital waterway was one of President Donald Trump’s key conditions for negotiating over the two-week period of the truce.
The Lebanese army said four of its soldiers were killed in Israeli strikes on Wednesday.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam declared Thursday a “national day of mourning for the martyrs and wounded of the Israeli attacks that targeted hundreds of innocent, defenseless civilians.” He ordered public institutions closed and flags lowered to half-mast.
The Iranian delegation is expected to arrive in Islamabad on Thursday for Pakistan-brokered talks with the United States, Iran’s ambassador said in a social media post, before deleting it.
Oil prices rose again after initially falling following the ceasefire announcement, as uncertainty grew over whether the truce would hold and when the Strait of Hormuz might reopen.
