Israeli strikes kill at least 21 in south Lebanon as France opens war-crimes probe over Gaza flotilla
Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks across southern Lebanon killed at least 21 people on June 5, including a paramedic and two Syrian children, despite a US-brokered ceasefire that was last extended for 45 days on May 17. Lebanon's Health Ministry says the toll from Israel's offensive launched March 2 has reached roughly 3,558 dead and over 10,000 wounded, with more than a million displaced. Reports indicate Israel is consolidating positions along the Litani line and has seized strategic points such as Beaufort Castle (Shaqif), raising fears of a renewed de facto occupation zone, while Hezbollah rejected a conditional ceasefire requiring it to withdraw north of the Litani. Separately, France's anti-terror prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation into torture and war crimes over Israel's treatment of activists from the Gaza Sumud flotilla intercepted in May.
Why it matters
The Litani River and Beaufort Castle have been focal points of Israeli-Lebanese conflict since the 1978 and 1982 invasions and the long 'security zone' occupation, so an entrenched Israeli presence echoes a deeply contested history and risks reigniting a wider war. The continued strikes despite repeated US-mediated truces underscore the fragility of the post-October 7 regional order and tie Lebanon's fate to broader US-Iran diplomacy. The French criminal probe signals growing European legal pressure on Israeli officials over conduct in Gaza and toward pro-Palestinian activists.