BEIRUT: The situation on the Blue Line between Lebanon and Israel is alarming, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon has said.
UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said potential remained for increased tension in the border area.
Tenenti said that the organization was maintaining communication channels with the Lebanese authorities and the Israeli army to avoid any extension of the conflict.
But he warned that “an expanded conflict would be a disaster not only for Lebanon but for the entire region.”
UNIFIL’s statement came as an Israeli military drone strike killed a motorcyclist — a member of the Iran-backed Hezbollah — in the square of the Lebanese border village of Aitaroun.
The attack came amid escalating hostilities between the Israeli army and Hezbollah, with Israeli warplanes breaking the sound barrier at low altitude over the southern border villages, reaching areas north of the Litani River.
Fatima, who lives near Nabatieh, said the explosions caused by the sonic booms “could make our veins explode due to their psychological impact.”
She added: “They happen daily, day and night, and scare my kids. We cannot leave our house as my husband’s work is here, and if he stops working we could die of hunger.
“If we flee, we cannot receive any of the aid provided since we do not live in a border village.”
Mohammed, who lives with his wife and two little girls in a village near Adloun, used to go to Beirut every day for work.
He said he moved to the village two years ago because the economic crisis impacted his job.
He is now thinking about moving his family to Beirut’s southern suburbs and is looking for a school for his children after an Israeli raid killed a physics teacher while on his way home and damaged a school bus that was transporting students.
He added: “My children were at that same school.”
Mohammed said he was looking for a school in Beirut to admit his children next year, but added that the schools are full as many families decided to travel from the south to Beirut following the end of the academic year.
The Israeli army resumed its attacks on Thursday afternoon, carrying out raids on Aitaroun for the second time and firing an air-to-surface missile on a targeted area.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has announced the death of Hussein Nehme Al-Hourani, 46, from Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon.
Israeli warplanes also bombed Wadi Jilou in Tyre on Thursday, targeting and demolishing a two-story building. The attack set several houses and a warehouse on fire, causing extensive damage to dozens of homes and infrastructure, including water and electricity. The warehouse stored cleaning supplies and oils.
Video footage captured by residents showed the extent of the destruction in Aitaroun and the targeted areas.
The residents said that the owner of one of the buildings, a member of the Jaber family, had received a text in Arabic on his phone from someone called Ibrahim prior to the raid.
The message read: “Evacuate the house immediately because the two-story location near the pharmacy in Wadi Jilou will be targeted shortly, and you must ensure everyone evacuates immediately.
“You are responsible for the lives of everyone. Evacuate as quickly as possible and move somewhere far away from the site as it is about to be blown up.”
It appeared that the sender used a non-Lebanese phone number.
A resident of a nearby building said: “This Israeli method of warning via cellphone or landline has been used multiple times to warn homeowners in the towns of Kfour and Beit Yahoun, among others, before destructive raids on buildings were carried out.
“The attack began with two missiles falling in the vicinity of the building, injuring civilians in their homes, before targeting the Jaber building and destroying it with terrifying missiles. Civil Defense members worked to extinguish the fires.”
Hezbollah said that the headquarters of Israel’s 91st Division in the Pranit Barracks and the soldiers’ positions around it were targeted with Falaq-1 rockets in retaliation for the Aitaroun attack.
Hezbollah claimed it hit the target directly, causing partial destruction and casualties.
Israeli attacks also targeted homes in the towns of Siddikine and Odaisseh.
Wednesday witnessed an escalation in the intensity of exchanged shelling and fires were caused by the use of incendiary bombs.
The Israeli attacks caused large fires to break out in the towns of Aitaroun and Maroun Al-Ras.
The Israeli army said a soldier was killed and 11 people wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack on Wednesday evening on a military site near Hurfeish in Western Galilee.
According to Hezbollah, the bombing, which used a squadron of assault drones, targeted positions and bases of Israeli officers and soldiers and did not trigger warning sirens.
The Israeli military used incendiary bombs to set fire to forests near the Blue Line, specifically targeting Naqoura and Alma Al-Shaab.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel was ready “for an extreme action on the northern front.”
The Israeli army said the death toll had reached 25, a total of 15 soldiers and 10 civilians, since the start of hostilities in southern Lebanon on Oct. 8.
