On Friday, Israel carried out a series of intense airstrikes in northeastern Lebanon, targeting farming villages and resulting in at least 52 deaths and numerous injuries, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. In central Gaza, hospital officials reported that Palestinians recovered the bodies of 25 people who had been killed in Israeli airstrikes that started on Thursday.

The latest violence comes amid a new diplomatic effort by U.S. President Joe Biden's administration, just days before the presidential election, to establish temporary cease-fire agreements. Early Saturday morning, Israel's emergency services reported that seven people were injured in an attack in the central town of Tira. Israel’s military stated that three projectiles were launched from Lebanon, with some intercepted.

Two of the injured were in moderate condition following the incident, according to the Magen David Adom agency, while the other victims suffered less severe injuries. Israel has intensified its campaign against the last of Hamas' combatants in Gaza, destroying parts of the northern region and igniting concerns about the humanitarian situation for the residents who are still there.

Israeli bombings in Lebanon have expanded in recent weeks to larger urban centres, such as the 80,000-person town of Baalbek, after first focusing on smaller border communities in the south where Hezbollah operates. supported by Iran In Lebanon, Hezbollah serves as both a social service provider and a significant political party. After Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Hezbollah started launching rockets, drones, and missiles from Lebanon into Israel to support Hamas. This escalated into a larger conflict when, on October 1, Israeli forces carried out a ground invasion of southern Lebanon for the first time since 2006.

In Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley—a region known for its small villages, olive groves, and vineyards—recent airstrikes by Israel have caused heavy damage. On Friday, airstrikes killed at least 52 people, forcing more families to flee with only what they could carry. Hussein Haj Hassan, a Lebanese legislator who represents the area, reported that 60,000 people had fled the northeastern city of Baalbek due to increased Israeli airstrikes and subsequent evacuation warnings from Israel.

Rescuers in Lebanon looked for survivors after airstrikes destroyed a building that had housed 20 people in the town of Younine and killed nine others. According to the Health Ministry, additional Israeli strikes in the northeastern region of Lebanon killed 12 persons in the town of Amhaz and 31 more in at least a dozen villages, raising the death toll to 52. According to the government, 72 persons were injured in the bombardment. However, Israel has not commented on the recent deadly strikes.

In Beirut, Lebanon's capital, Israeli planes bombed the southern Dahiyeh suburb overnight and early Friday for the first time in four days, causing widespread panic after a brief period of calm. The Israeli military had warned residents in at least nine areas in Dahiyeh to evacuate, stating that they were targeting Hezbollah’s weapon production facilities and command centres. While no casualties were reported in Dahiyeh, the ongoing airstrikes have caused many residents to flee each night out of fear. 

In several places, Hezbollah supporters hoisted the group's vivid yellow banner over the debris. The Health Ministry stated that, excluding Friday's increasing number, more than 2,897 people have been killed and 13,150 wounded in Lebanon since the war between Israel and Hezbollah broke out in 2023. According to health officials, women and children accounted for 25% of the fatalities. According to estimates from UN agencies, 1.4 million people have been displaced as a result of Israel's ground invasion and bombardment of Lebanon. About 60,000 individuals who live in Israel's northern villages close to Lebanon have also been displaced for more than a year.

Hezbollah launched rockets from Lebanon into northern Israel on Thursday, hitting agricultural areas and killing seven people, including four Thai farm workers. Meanwhile, Israel continued airstrikes in Gaza on Friday. One major strike targeted the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, killing 21 people, including a young child and his 10-year-old sister, according to officials at the nearby Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Other strikes in Gaza targeted a motorcycle in Zuwaida and a house in Deir al-Balah, resulting in four more deaths. Altogether, 25 people lost their lives in Gaza on Friday.

Israel reported that it struck Hamas facilities and a fighter near the Nuseirat refugee camp, though it hasn’t yet commented on strikes that occurred outside the camp area. They acknowledged reports of civilian casualties and are looking into them. Separately, the Israeli military confirmed an airstrike on a vehicle in Khan Younis, a town in southern Gaza, which killed Izz al-Din Kassab, a senior member of the Hamas political bureau, along with his assistant, Ayman Ayesh.

Hamas confirmed Kassab’s death. Although Kassab was not a public figure, Israel claimed he acted as a coordinator among Gaza’s militant groups. Meanwhile, American diplomats have now left the area after holding several meetings with Israeli officials, but no progress has been made on securing a ceasefire for either Gaza or Lebanon. On Friday, Hamas reiterated its demand for a permanent cease-fire and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. According to senior Hamas official Bassem Naem, Israel's current offer includes only a temporary pause in the conflict and an increase in aid shipments, which does not address Palestinians' full needs for safety, stability, relief, and rebuilding. This statement was made initially on Hamas-run Al Aqsa TV and later confirmed to The Associated Press.

Since October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants killed around 1,200 people in Israel and took roughly 250 hostages back to Gaza, Israel's counter-offensive has resulted in over 43,000 Palestinian deaths. Health authorities in Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, do not separate civilians from fighters in their records, though they report that most of the casualties are women and children. Recently, Israeli forces have focused on Hamas militants in northern Gaza, escalating attacks in this area. This has left tens of thousands of people in heavy bombardment zones with limited access to food and water.

Repeated Israeli airstrikes have delayed an urgent polio vaccination effort. The World Health Organisation planned to restart the campaign on Saturday, but only in Gaza City, as towns like Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza are still inaccessible due to the military’s restrictions. On Friday, the United Nations and other relief groups warned of a catastrophic situation in northern Gaza, citing blocked humanitarian aid, military operations in hospitals, airstrikes on shelters, and difficulties faced by Palestinian rescue teams in reaching survivors after the attacks.