Israel launches wave of strikes on south Lebanon, hits key bridge

Israel said it struck "Hezbollah" targets in south Lebanon on Sunday shortly after the military was ordered to destroy bridges allegedly used by the Iran-backed group across the Litani River.

Lebanese official media reported Israeli raids in several areas of the south, while an AFP correspondent saw smoke billowing from a key bridge that was hit outside the city of Tyre, in an escalation in violence in Lebanon after two days of relative reprieve.

Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Israeli-U.S. attacks.

Israel has sent troops into Lebanon and carried out extensive airstrikes in the country, while Hezbollah has kept up rocket barrages.

Israel's military said it began "a wide wave of strikes" against Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

Earlier Sunday, Israel said rocket fire from Lebanon killed one person, the first fatality there due to Hezbollah fire since the latest war erupted three weeks ago.

Two Israeli soldiers had previously been killed in southern Lebanon, according to the military.

Lebanon's health ministry said four people were killed on Sunday in two strikes in the south, while authorities have reported 1,029 dead in three weeks of conflict and more than one million displaced.

- Bridges -

Israel's ZAKA 360 emergency response unit said a person was pronounced dead after a strike on their vehicle "carried out by a rocket fired from Lebanon".

Local firefighters said flames had engulfed two vehicles after a "direct hit" in the northern Israeli community of Misgav Am.

Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters targeted "a gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers" in Misgav Am "with a rocket barrage".

It was among a series of attacks the group claimed on Sunday, mainly against Israeli troops in northern Israel and in southern Lebanon, where Israeli soldiers have been carrying out ground incursions.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement that he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the military "to immediately destroy all the bridges over the Litani River that are used for terrorist activity, in order to prevent Hezbollah terrorists and weapons from moving south".

The Litani River runs around 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Israeli border.

The Israeli army later bombed the key Qasmiyeh bridge, located on a main highway outside the city of Tyre, with the AFP correspondent reporting the bridge was partly destroyed.

Earlier this week, Israel attacked two bridges spanning the Litani, also alleging they were being used by Hezbollah.

- 'Commander' killed -

Katz said the military was also instructed to "accelerate the demolition of Lebanese houses in the contact villages in order to thwart threats to Israeli communities".

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency also reported at least one strike on the Bekaa Valley in the country's east.

Hezbollah said its fighters repeatedly targeted Israeli soldiers and vehicles in or near the border town of Taybeh, as well as in or near the strategic town of Khiam, where the group has repeatedly said it has targeted Israeli forces in recent days.

On Saturday, Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with Israeli forces in Khiam and in the coastal town of Naqoura.

The group also claimed attacks on northern Israel on Saturday, including targeting an air defense system in Maalot-Tarshiha, where Israeli public broadcaster Kan 11 reported three people were lightly wounded.

The Israeli military said it killed a fighter on Saturday who was the "commander of the special forces in Hezbollah's Radwan Force", referring to the group's elite unit.

Israel has warned residents of swathes of south Lebanon to evacuate and has said it wants to create a buffer zone in Lebanon to protect residents of northern Israel.