Lebanon says Israeli strike killed 13 people near Palestinian refugee camp

At least 13 people were killed in an Israeli strike near a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon, the country’s health ministry said.

The Israeli military said it targeted members of the Palestinian armed group Hamas “operating at a training complex… in the Ein el-Hilweh area.”

It said the location had been used by Hamas to plan and carry out attacks against Israel, which Hamas called “fabrication and lies.”

Israel has regularly carried out airstrikes against people and places in Lebanon since reaching a deal to end the conflict with the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah. Most of the strikes have targeted Hezbollah, but Israel has also attacked Hamas in the country.

In addition to those killed, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said at least four people were injured in the strike.

Footage showed rescue workers at the entrance to Ein el-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon.

Online footage also showed ambulances rushing through the narrow streets of the crowded camp as a huge plume of smoke billowed from the affected site.

According to initial information, the strike hit an area outside a mosque, usually frequented at night.

Condemning the attack, Hamas said it had “no military installations in Palestinian camps in Lebanon” and that the targeted site was an “open sports field.”

In its statement, the Israeli military said that “before the attack, measures were taken to reduce the risk of harm to civilians, including through the use of precision munitions, aerial observations and additional intelligence information.”

Hamas attacked southern Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. The Israeli military response has killed at least 69,169 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

Fighting between Israel and Hezbollah intensified after the Lebanese group fired rockets at Israeli positions the day after October 7, 2023. Hezbollah said it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

Israel and Hezbollah waged an escalating 13-month conflict that culminated in an intense Israeli bombing campaign and a ground incursion into southern Lebanon in October 2024.

Lebanese authorities said Israeli attacks killed around 4,000 people, including many civilians, and displaced more than 1.2 million residents. Israeli authorities said more than 80 of their soldiers and 47 of their civilians had been killed in the hostilities.