Beirut, May 16 (IANS) Three paramedics were killed and another seriously wounded in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, as Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam urged stronger Arab and international backing for Lebanon’s diplomatic efforts, warning the country faces its gravest crisis since its founding.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said the strike hit a civil defence centre operated by the Islamic Health Authority in the town of Harouf and completely destroyed the facility.
The ministry accused Israel of violating international humanitarian law through attacks targeting medical and rescue personnel, reports Xinhua news agency.
Salam said on Friday that the latest war “was imposed on Lebanon” and resulted in Israel occupying 68 towns, villages and positions.
He said Lebanon could not recover while young people continued emigrating, the middle class eroded, and key sectors such as education and healthcare struggled to survive.
The current round of fighting began on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets towards Israel amid tensions triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran. Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground invasion of Lebanon.
Meanwhile, in the latest development, Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 45-day extension of their ceasefire that took effect last month, a spokesperson for the US State Department has said.
“The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress,” State Department spokesman Tommy Piggott said on X on Friday (local time).
Israel and Lebanon will resume political negotiations at the US State Department on June 2-3, while their military delegates are set to launch parallel security talks at the Pentagon on May 29, Piggott said.
The two countries held their third round of direct talks here on Thursday and Friday, which Piggott described as “highly productive.”
Despite the ceasefire, clashes between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon have continued.
Hezbollah said it targeted Israeli drones, troops, military bulldozers, and a Merkava tank in several areas of southern Lebanon.
–IANS
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