Israeli airstrikes were targeting Lebanon’s main coastal highway south of the capital city of Beirut today, hitting at least seven vehicles and killing 12 people, along with wounding an unspecified number of others.
The main strikes were reported earlier in the day between Beirut and the key port city of Sidon, but there were other, subsequent strikes further south near Saadiyat and Naqoura. Among the slain included a woman and her two children.
The IDF didn’t comment directly on why they were attacking the highway, but instead claimed they had attacked “Hezbollah infrastructure” in Sidon and Naqoura. It’s not clear if that was something distinct that they were doing at the same time, or amounts to their justification for the attacks.
Rescuers inspect a car hit in an Israeli strike in Jiyeh area south of Beirut, Lebanon May 13, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Ali Hankir
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) issued a statement on Wednesday calling for Israel to respect the ceasefire and to allow for the safe return of refugees to their homes. Estimates have put in excess of 20% of Lebanon’s entire population displaced since the war began. Even since the ceasefire was announced last month, Israel has killed in excess of 400 people in attacks (nearly 600 by NRC’s estimate).
The dozen people killed in today’s attacks were in addition to the 13 killed yesterday, which included two paramedics. Though the IDF purports that almost everyone they killed is Hezbollah, the slain persistently include a number of medical workers as well as women and children.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem called on Lebanon to withdraw from negotiations with Israel, citing the constant Israeli attacks during what was meant to be a ceasefire, and accused Israel of planning to annex Lebanon into a Greater Israel, saying Hezbollah would continue to resist that. Some Israeli officials have denied territorial ambitions in Lebanon, while others are indeed calling for annexation of parts of the nation.
