Lebanese officials say Israeli drone strike wounded paramedics

An Israeli drone struck near two ambulances on their way to pick up casualties from overnight strikes in southern Lebanon, wounding four paramedics, local officials told The Associated Press.

The civil defence unit of a scouts group affiliated with Lebanon's Amal Movement, a political party allied with Hezbollah, said that the drone “directly targeted” their two ambulances. They were heading south to save several people wounded in an Israeli strike that hit a house overnight.

Local and medical officials told AP that the Lebanese army and the Red Cross transported the wounded paramedics to a hospital in Tyre, as Israeli strikes reportedly did not stop. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation.

There were reports that the paramedics were on their way to collect two slain Hezbollah militants.

Israeli army Arabic language spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that Israeli forces had launched strikes on a “terrorist cell” that was attempting to fire missiles toward Israel from the Ras Naqoura area in south Lebanon. He said two cars had arrived at the scene during the strikes but that the cars were not the intended target.

Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants and their allies along the tense Lebanon-Israel border have been clashing for almost a month since the start of the Hamas-Israel war. While clashes remain largely contained to areas near the border, they have increased in intensity as Israel continues its ground incursion into Gaza. (AP)