O governo do Líbano anunciou que o prefeito da cidade de Nabatiyeh, Ahmad Kahil, é um dos cinco mortos durante uma série de bombardeios do Exército de Israel contra a cidade do sul do país, que atingiu um prédio da administração municipal nesta quarta-feira, 16, enquanto representantes políticos participavam de uma reunião.
"O ataque inimigo israelense (...) em dois prédios, o da prefeitura de Nabatiyeh e o da união de municípios, matou cinco pessoas", anunciou o Ministério da Saúde libanês em um comunicado, acrescentando que o número de mortos é um balanço preliminar e que socorristas ainda procuram sobreviventes sob os escombros.
A governadora de Nabatiyeh, Howaida Turk, confirmou que o prefeito da cidade estava entre os morte, referindo-se ao ataque como "um massacre", que atingiu o prédio municipal enquanto o líder político e sua equipe participavam de uma reunião de gerenciamento de crise. Equipes de resgate afiliadas ao Hezbollah também disseram à AFP que o prefeito estava entre as várias pessoas mortas no ataque.
A ofensiva também provocou reação da cúpula política do país. O primeiro-ministro Najib Mikati condenou os ataques israelenses, acusando as forças do Estado judeu de mirarem intencionalmente a reunião municipal.
"[Condeno] a nova agressão israelense contra civis na cidade de Nabatiyeh, que deliberadamente teve como alvo uma reunião do conselho municipal que estava discutindo os serviços da cidade e a situação de socorro", disse Mikati.
Testemunhas em Nabatiyeh afirmaram que dos 11 bombardeios que atingiram a cidade nesta quarta, nove deles foram detonados em um espaço de 30 minutos. O relato local é de que as explosões teriam criado "uma espécie de cinturão de fogo" na área. Elas também disseram que os ataques destruíram o prédio d a prefeitura e um centro médico próximo, com dois médicos entre os mortos.
Imagens da AFP mostraram várias colunas de fumaça cinza subindo de Nabatiyeh, após os ataques consecutivos. No sábado, ataques israelenses já haviam arrasado o principal mercado da cidade e feriram oito pessoas, disse o Ministério da Saúde.
Em um comunicado, as Forças Armadas israelenses afirmaram que ataques contra Nabatiyeh foram disparados com objetivo de atingir uma rede de infraestrutura do Hezbollah, incluindo prédios militares, quartéis-generais e depósitos de armas.
"Caças da IAF, em cooperação com o Comando Norte, atacaram dezenas de alvos terroristas do Hezbollah na área de Nabatiyeh", disse o comando militar israelense. "que o Hezbollah colocou perto de estruturas civis, usando a população civil como escudos humanos".
Pelo menos 1.356 pessoas foram mortas no Líbano desde que Israel lançou uma intensa campanha aérea em 23 de setembro, de acordo com uma contagem da AFP de números do Ministério da Saúde libanês, embora o número real seja provavelmente maior.
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Mourners in the Nahr al-Bared camp for Palestinian refugees gather for the funeral of commanders of the Popular Front For the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) group who were killed by an overnight Israeli air strike in Beirut, at the camp near Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on September 30, 2024. (Photo by Fathi AL-MASRI / AFP)
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Mourners in the Nahr al-Bared camp for Palestinian refugees gather for the funeral of commanders of the Popular Front For the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) group who were killed by an overnight Israeli air strike in Beirut, at the camp near Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on September 30, 2024. (Photo by Fathi AL-MASRI / AFP)
(LEBANON-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT)
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A fighter fires live rounds into the air from an assault rifle during the funeral of two commanders and one member of the Popular Front For the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) group who were killed by an overnight Israeli air strike in Beirut, at the Beddawi camp for Palestinian refugees near Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on September 30, 2024. (Photo by Fathi AL-MASRI / AFP)
(LEBANON-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT)
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Mourners gather by ambulances transporting the bodies of two commanders and one member of the Popular Front For the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) who were killed by an overnight Israeli air strike in Beirut, during the funeral at the Beddawi camp for Palestinian refugees near Lebanon's northern city of Tripoli on September 30, 2024. (Photo by Fathi AL-MASRI / AFP)
(LEBANON-ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT)
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Conflitos no Oriente Médio: sem sinal de solução à vista
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Iranians hold pictures of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli air strike on Beirut's southern suburbs on September 27, during an anti-Israel protest in Palestine Square in Tehran on September 30, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
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Iranians hold pictures of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli air strike on Beirut's southern suburbs on September 27, during an anti-Israel protest in Palestine Square in Tehran on September 30, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
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A picture taken from northern Israel, along the border with southern Lebanon, on September 30, 2024 shows a fire following Israeli bombardment on an area of south Lebanon. The Israeli military said Tuesday troops have started "targeted ground raids" in villages of southern Lebanon. The incursions backed by airstrikes and artillery began "a few hours ago" and are targeting militant group Hezbollah "in villages close to the border" with Israel, a military statement said. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
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Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a neighborhood in Beiruts southern suburb early on October 1, 2024. The Israeli military said Tuesday troops have started "targeted ground raids" in villages of southern Lebanon. The incursions backed by airstrikes and artillery began "a few hours ago" and are targeting militant group Hezbollah "in villages close to the border" with Israel, a military statement said. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)
(Exchanges of fire on Lebanon-Israel border after Hamas offensive)
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10/11
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a neighborhood in Beiruts southern suburb early on October 1, 2024. The Israeli military said Tuesday troops have started "targeted ground raids" in villages of southern Lebanon. The incursions backed by airstrikes and artillery began "a few hours ago" and are targeting militant group Hezbollah "in villages close to the border" with Israel, a military statement said. (Photo by Fadel ITANI / AFP)
(Exchanges of fire on Lebanon-Israel border after Hamas offensive)
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Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a neighborhood in Beiruts southern suburb early on October 1, 2024. A Lebanese security official said Israel had conducted at least six strikes on south Beirut in the night from Monday to Tuesday, after Israel's army called on residents in the Hezbollah stronghold to evacuate. (Photo by ETIENNE TORBEY / AFP)
(Exchanges of fire on Lebanon-Israel border after Hamas offensive)