Israel said it struck a series of Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon on Thursday, with President Joseph Aoun denouncing the new attacks as a "fully-fledged crime" and accusing Israel of rejecting Beirut's overtures towards diplomacy.

The Lebanese military said Israel was preventing the full implementation of a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah, which hours earlier had publicly asserted its right to defend itself and rejected the prospect of direct political talks between Lebanon and Israel.

The truce deal was agreed between Israel and Hezbollah in November 2024 after more than a year of hostilities, but Israeli attacks in Lebanon have continued as it accuses the militant group of trying to rebuild its forces.

The Israeli military said its strikes on Thursday had targeted "terrorist infrastructure and weapon storage facilities in southern Lebanon".

"We will not allow Hezbollah to rearm themselves, to recover, build back up its strength, to threaten the state of Israel," Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian told reporters, accusing the group of "continuous terrorist activities".

A strike killed one person earlier in the day, according to the Lebanese health ministry. The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hezbollah construction........

© Al Monitor