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BERIUT: — Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed two people on Tuesday, according to the Lebanese health ministry, with Israel saying it had targeted members of Hezbollah.
Israel has repeatedly bombed Lebanon despite a November ceasefire that followed more than a year of hostilities with the Iran-backed militant group that culminated in two months of open war.
The health ministry said in a statement that an “Israeli drone strike” on an excavator in Yater killed one person.
It also reported a separate air strike on Deir Aames, which killed one person and wounded another.
The Israeli military said in a statement that it had killed Mahmud Ali Issa in Deir Aames, alleging he was “responsible for the financial and military connections between Hezbollah and the residents of the village.”
It also said it killed a Hezbollah member who “operated an engineering vehicle in the Zibqin area,” near Yater, accusing him of trying to “reestablish Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites.”
Israel carries out strikes in southern Lebanon on a near-daily basis, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah.
The United Nations said last week it had verified the deaths of 103 civilians in Lebanon since the November truce, demanding a halt to the ongoing suffering.
Tuesday’s attacks follow an Israeli strike the day before that killed a man who had been previously wounded and lost his sight when Israel blew up hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah members last year. The man’s wife was also killed in the strike.
Hezbollah, which was severely weakened by the war, faces a push to give up its arsenal.
Under intense US and Israeli pressure, Lebanon’s government is seeking to disarm the group, and the Lebanese army has drawn up a plan to do so beginning in the country’s south.

CAIRO: Peace talks between Israel and Hamas were resuming at an Egyptian resort city on Tuesday, the two-year anniversary of the militant group’s surprise attack on Israel that triggered the bloody conflict that has seen tens of thousands of Palestinians killed in Gaza.
The second day of indirect negotiations in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh are focused on a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump last week that aims to bring about an end to the war in Gaza.
After several hours of talks Monday, an Egyptian official with knowledge of the discussions said the parties agreed on most of the first-phase terms, which include the release of hostages and establishing a ceasefire. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private meetings.
The plan has received widespread international backing and Trump told reporters on Monday that he thought there was a “really good chance” of a “lasting deal.”
“This is beyond Gaza,” he said. “Gaza is a big deal, but this is really peace in the Middle East.”
Trump’s peace plan
Many uncertainties remain, however, including the demand that Hamas disarm and the future governance of Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long said Hamas must surrender and disarm, but Hamas has not yet commented on whether it would be willing to.
The plan envisions Israel withdrawing its troops from Gaza after Hamas disarms, and an international security force being put in place. The territory would then be placed under international governance, with Trump and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair overseeing it.
The devastating war that has ensued has upended global politics, resulted in Israel killing 67,160 Palestinians and wounding nearly 170,000, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and has left the Gaza Strip in ruins.
The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but says more than half of the deaths were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.
A growing number of experts, including those commissioned by a UN body, have said Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip amounts to genocide — an accusation Israel vehemently denies.
On Tuesday at the area attacked by Hamas two years ago, thousands of Israelis gathered to pay tribute to their loved ones who were killed and kidnapped. An explosion from Gaza echoed across the fields as they reflected, following the launch of a rocket in northern Gaza. No damage or injuries were reported.
In Gaza City, meantime, residents said Israeli attacks continued until the early hours of the morning on Tuesday, though there were no immediate reports of casualties.
A promise of humanitarian relief
Ahead of the resumption of talks on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an end to the hostilities, which have created “a humanitarian catastrophe on a scale that defied comprehension.”
“The recent proposal by US President Donald J. Trump presents an opportunity that must be seized to bring this tragic conflict to an end,” Guterres said.
“A permanent ceasefire and a credible political process are essential to prevent further bloodshed and pave the way for peace. International law must be respected.”
Mediators from Qatar and Egypt were facilitating the talks, meeting first on Monday with members of the delegation from Hamas, then later with those from Israel.
Israel’s delegation included Gal Hirsch, coordinator for the hostages and the missing from Netanyahu’s office, while Hamas representatives included Khalil Al-Hayya, the group’s top negotiator.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Monday that US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were on hand to talk part in the talks and keep the president apprised.
She did not comment on a specific deadline for concluding the talks, but said it is important “that we get this done quickly.”
Part of the plan is to surge humanitarian aid into Gaza, where more than two million Palestinian are facing hunger and in some areas famine.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the organization was poised and ready to act.
“The machinery is cranked up and ready to go as soon as we get the green light,” Dujarric said. “There are many thousands of metric tons in the pipeline of goods ready to enter” from Jordan, the Israeli port of Ashdod and elsewhere, he added.