Emergency personnel stand by the burning rubble of a civil defence centre following an Israeli airstrike in the southern city of Nabatieh overnight into on May 24, 2026. AFP
The Directorate General of Civil Defence said the building had collapsed and a large number of vehicles and equipment had been damaged by a "direct hit in a hostile Israeli strike".
It added that there were no reports of casualties among its personnel, who had been moved to another location before the incident.
The civil defence agency condemned "this attack on a centre dedicated to humanitarian and relief work", stressing that it was facing "growing risks and challenges" in carrying out its operations.
Israeli strikes in Lebanon have continued despite a truce that came into effect on 17 April.
Israel has also established what it describes as a “yellow line” occupation zone covering 608 square kilometres — around 6 percent of Lebanon’s territory — reviving a strategy similar to the one implemented in Gaza, from Rafah to Beit Hanoun, through the destruction of border villages.
According to Lebanon’s health ministry, 123 rescuers and healthcare workers have been killed in Israeli strikes since 2 March, when Israel resumed its large-scale bombing campaign in Lebanon.
Since then, Israeli attacks have killed 3,123 people and displaced more than one million residents from southern Lebanon.
During the same period, more than 3,688 Israeli strikes were recorded targeting homes, infrastructure, and bridges, including bridges over the Litani River and the last remaining bridge connecting the city of Tyre to surrounding areas. Rights organizations have described the attacks as potential “war crimes.”
In March, the United Nations human rights office warned that Israeli airstrikes on residential buildings, displaced civilians, and healthcare workers in Lebanon raised serious concerns under international law and could amount to war crimes.
“Israeli airstrikes have destroyed entire residential buildings in dense urban environments, with multiple members of the same family, including women and children, often killed together,” UN human rights office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told reporters in Geneva.
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