The Israeli escalation expanded today, Friday, to include the Bekaa Valley after a bloody day that witnessed dozens of raids on southern Lebanon, indicating that the confrontation has moved to a more extensive stage despite international efforts aimed at establishing the ceasefire.
The “Lebanon Debate” correspondent reported that two people were martyred and a number of others were wounded in an initial, non-final toll of the Israeli raids that targeted the Baalbek area.
According to the reporter, Israeli warplanes launched two raids targeting the vicinity of the city of Baalbek. The first raid targeted an agricultural area in Al-Jamaliyya, north of the city, while the second raid targeted a building in the town of Ain Burdai, south of Baalbek, with several missiles, which led to the death of two people and the wounding of a number of people, according to the preliminary outcome.
An Israeli raid also targeted the town of Zalaya in the Western Bekaa, as part of a series of simultaneous raids that affected several areas in the Bekaa.
In parallel, Israeli army spokesman Avichai Adraee announced, in a post on the “X” platform, that the Israeli army raided what he described as Hezbollah’s infrastructure in the Bekaa region.
Adraee added that the raids came, according to him, “in response to repeated violations of the ceasefire,” accusing the party of continuing to plan and carry out operations against Israeli forces.
This escalation comes hours after one of the most violent rounds of bombing witnessed in the south, as Israeli warplanes carried out dozens of raids on large areas in Nabatieh and Iqlim al-Tuffah, in conjunction with violent artillery shelling, which led to martyrs and wounded and recorded waves of displacement from a number of towns.
The raids also coincided with an unprecedented escalation in Israeli political discourse, as Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for expanding strikes against Lebanon, saying that “all of Lebanon must be on fire,” in a position that sparked widespread reactions.
The expansion of the scope of the raids from the south to the Bekaa comes at a time when international efforts are continuing to prevent the collapse of the truce, amid growing fears that the continued escalation on the ground will undermine the political and diplomatic efforts made to contain the confrontation and prevent it from sliding into a broader war.
