Israeli airstrikes kill 22 more in Lebanon

At least 22 people have been killed since early Saturday in a fresh wave of Israeli attacks on Lebanon, the Lebanese state-run media reported. The health ministry said on Saturday that more than 90 people were killed in Israeli air strikes across the country in the past 24 hours, bringing the war's death toll to 2,020 people, including 165 children, nearly 250 women and 85 medics. In the latest attack, an Israeli airstrike on the town of Tefahta, southern Lebanon, killed eight people and injured nine others, including five in critical condition. An Israeli airstrike on the town of Toul in Lebanon's Nabatieh killed three people, including a health authority member, and wounded three others, including a paramedic, the National News Agency (NNA) reported, citing the Lebanese Health Ministry. A separate wave of attacks claimed three lives in the town of Kfar Sir. Four others were also killed when a residential building along the Zefta–Nabatieh highway was hit. A strike on the town of Qsaibeh killed another person, the NNA added. Hezbollah said it had conducted several military operations against Israeli positions on Saturday, both within Lebanese territory and in northern Israel. Israel said it will not discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah when it meets Lebanese officials for talks in Washington next week, as Israeli forces launch new deadly attacks on southern Lebanon. At least 10 people, including three emergency workers, were killed by Israeli attacks on Saturday, Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health said, as state media reported raids on more than a dozen locations in the south. This comes after Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors held late-night discussions on Friday to finalise arrangements for a meeting due at the Department of State on Tuesday to discuss a pathway to peace. Israel's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said the talks would mark the start of formal negotiations with the Lebanese government, despite the absence of diplomatic relations between the two countries. "Israel agreed to begin formal peace negotiations" with Lebanon, he said. But he ruled out any discussion involving Hezbollah. "Israel refused to discuss a ceasefire with the Hezbollah terrorist organisation, which continues to attack Israel and is the main obstacle to peace between the two countries." Lebanese lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah, who is affiliated with Hezbollah, said on Saturday that the group rejects direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel. The move is "a blatant violation of the [national] pact, the constitution and Lebanese laws … and it exacerbates domestic divisions at a time when Lebanon most needs solidarity and internal unity to face Israel's aggression and preserve civil peace", Fadlallah said in a statement. "What the enemy has been unable to do on the ground … it will not obtain in negotiations with an authority that lacks decision-making power, has abandoned its most basic duties, has failed to protect its people and cannot be trusted to safeguard national sovereignty," he added. Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Saturday that he was postponing a planned trip to the United States, where he was reportedly expected to meet Secretary of State Marco Rubio next week, in order to "safeguard the security of the Lebanese people and their unity." As diplomatic efforts proceed amid tensions, Israel's attacks continue. Meanwhile, turning to the fight against Iran's proxies, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted that Israel created security zones in Gaza, Syria, and Lebanon. "We will deal with" Hamas in Gaza, he promises. Israel is also dealing with the missiles that Hezbollah still has, says Netanyahu. Hezbollah also planned that "thousands of Radwan terrorists will covertly reach the border, will invade, and conquer the Galilee." "We are still fighting them, it's not over," he says. Netanyahu said that Lebanon asked Israel several times over the past month to begin direct peace talks. "I approved it," he says, adding that there are two conditions - disarming Hezbollah, and a "real peace agreement" that will last for generations. He asserts other countries are also reaching out to Israel. Netanyahu claims that Iranian propaganda minimizing Israel's achievements "is echoed in our media, and the propaganda of our political rivals is echoed in Iran." (With input from News Desk)