Israeli Drone Strikes Hit Highway South Of Beirut, 8 Killed Including Two Children

Israeli drone strikes targeted three vehicles on a main highway south of Beirut on Wednesday, killing eight people , including a woman and her two children , according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

The Israeli military said it had struck Hezbollah infrastructure in several areas of southern Lebanon, shortly after issuing evacuation warnings to residents of six southern villages . The strikes came amid escalating cross-border tensions despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to stabilise the situation.

The Lebanese Health Ministry confirmed the attacks in a statement, noting multiple strikes but not specifying how many victims were in each vehicle. Two of the drone strikes hit a highway connecting Beirut with the southern port city of Sidon , while a third strike, reported by the state-run National News Agency, targeted the town of Saadiyat , near a busy freeway. A fourth strike reportedly hit a car at the northern entrance of Sidon in the early afternoon.

An Associated Press photographer reported seeing the bodies of three victims at two strike sites near the coastal towns of Barja and Jiyeh , underscoring the scale of destruction along the coastal corridor south of the capital.

In southern Lebanon, further Israeli airstrikes were reported across multiple towns and villages, while Hezbollah claimed it had launched additional attacks on northern Israel. The exchange of fire continues despite a US-brokered ceasefire , which came into effect on April 17.

According to Lebanese Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine , a total of 380 people have been killed and 1,122 injured since the ceasefire began. He added that the overall toll since the start of the conflict has reached 2,882 dead and 8,786 wounded .

The latest phase of the Israel–Hezbollah conflict began on March 2, after Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel, two days following US and Israeli strikes on Iran. The ongoing hostilities have persisted despite international pressure to de-escalate.

Meanwhile, Lebanon and Israel are expected to hold another round of direct talks in Washington on Thursday, as the United States continues to push for a diplomatic breakthrough between the two sides, who have technically remained in a state of war since Israel’s creation in 1948.