Beirut, June 30 (IANS): Three Hezbollah members were killed on Sunday in an Israeli airstrike in the southeast village of Houla, a media report said.

An Israeli drone targeted, with four air-to-surface missiles, a two-story building in Houla, killing three Hezbollah members and causing severe damage to neighbouring homes, Lebanese military sources told Xinhua.

The Israeli army conducted five air attacks on the villages of Taybeh, Rab El Thalathine, and Houla, and targeted eight towns and villages in the eastern and central regions with approximately 40 artillery shells, the sources added.

For its part, Hezbollah announced that it attacked the Israeli sites of Misqav Am, al-Motella, and Al-Alam.

Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on October 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas' attack on Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon.

Since the start of the confrontations on both sides of the border between Lebanon and Israel, 553 people have been killed, including 356 Hezbollah members and 100 civilians, according to Lebanese security and medical reports.