Israeli attacks on Lebanon may violate international law, UN warns

Recent deadly Israeli attacks on Lebanon and Hezbollah rocket fire into Israel may amount to serious violations of international humanitarian law, the United Nations human rights office (OHCHR) says.

The findings come from a UN report released on Friday, focusing on the first three weeks of the latest escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, which began on March 2. Hezbollah fighters launched rockets at Israel in response to the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, prompting a large‑scale military offensive from Israel.
Violations of international humanitarian law
The UN report focused on attacks targeting populated areas and residential buildings in Lebanon and Israel.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has documented several cases in which Israeli strikes hit, and in some instances destroyed, multi‑storey residential buildings, killing entire families in Lebanon, which may constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law, OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said.

The report cited the example of an Israeli strike on March 8 that hit a multi‑storey residential building in the town of Sir el‑Gharbiyeh, in the Nabatieh governorate. The strike killed at least 13 civilians inside the building, including five women, five men, two boys and a girl.