By Wassim Saifuldine
BEIRUT (AA) - A woman was killed and seven others, including a child, were injured on Wednesday in Israeli strikes targeting various areas in southern Lebanon, which also sparked fires in some regions.
The Lebanese Ministry of Health reported in a statement that Israeli artillery shelling on the town of Qabrikha in southern Lebanon resulted in the death of a woman and injuries to two others, including a 12-year-old child.
In a separate statement, the ministry noted that an Israeli airstrike on the town of Houla in southern Lebanon caused injuries to three individuals.
Earlier, the ministry had announced that an Israeli airstrike on the town of Khiam injured two people, who were subsequently admitted to Marjayoun Governmental Hospital for treatment.
The Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) reported that Israeli warplanes launched an airstrike on the town of Houla, while an Israeli drone carried out an attack on the town of Qantara, also in southern Lebanon.
The NNA added that Israeli warplanes targeted the valleys and hills near the towns of Zebqine and Yater in the western sector after midnight, following strikes on the outskirts of Ayta ash Shab in the central sector.
The report also mentioned that an Israeli airstrike targeted the Wadi el Houjeir area, while Israeli artillery shelled the outskirts of the towns of Talousa and Qabrikha.
Furthermore, the agency noted that Israeli reconnaissance and drone aircraft intensified their flights over the villages in the western and central sectors until the early hours of the morning.
In separate statements, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for targeting the Israeli positions of Ruwaisat al-Alam and al-Samaqa in the occupied Kfar Shuba hills with rocket-propelled weapons.
The Lebanese group also reported in other statements that its fighters targeted the Hanita and Marj positions with artillery shells.
In another statement, Hezbollah said its fighters shelled an Israeli military position at the Zarit barracks, the headquarters of the Western Brigade, with artillery.
Tensions have spiked along Lebanon's border with Israel amid cross-border attacks between Hezbollah and Israeli forces as Tel Aviv pressed ahead with its brutal onslaught on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 40,800 people since last Oct. 7 following an attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
*Writing by Mohammad Sio