Beirut, Lebanon. The UN children’s agency said on Friday that an average of 11 children have been killed or injured every 24 hours in Lebanon over the past week, as Israel expanded strikes across the country despite a ceasefire.
Strikes in southern Lebanon and Beirut
Heavy Israeli strikes hit towns and villages in southern Lebanon overnight on Wednesday and into Thursday after Israel declared a new area of the south a combat zone. Israel also struck a building in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Thursday.
Child casualties
Unicef said 77 children had been killed or injured in the past seven days, citing figures from Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health. The agency said that since the ceasefire began on April 16, 55 children have been killed and 212 injured.
Unicef spokesman Ricardo Pires called on all parties to fully respect the ceasefire.
“Under international humanitarian law, children and civilian infrastructure must be protected,” he said.
Health concerns
The ceasefire announced by Washington was intended to halt fighting between Israeli troops and Iran-backed Hezbollah, which has continued since March 2.
The World Health Organization said on Friday that the expansion of military activities posed grave health concerns for the Lebanese population.
Since the ceasefire took effect, 27 attacks on healthcare facilities in Lebanon have been reported, resulting in 25 deaths and 42 injuries, according to the WHO. It added that 16 hospitals and 13 primary healthcare centres have been damaged in attacks.