BEIRUT/JERUSALEM, June 3 (Xinhua) -- At least nine people, including a Lebanese soldier and three paramedics, were killed and several others wounded in a series of Israeli airstrikes across southern Lebanon on Wednesday, according to Lebanese sources.
The casualties included a soldier from the Lebanese Army. The Islamic Health Authority said paramedic Yahya Ayash, from the town of Harouf, was killed when an Israeli drone targeted an ambulance crew evacuating casualties from Zebdine after an earlier strike.
The organization added that another paramedic was wounded and that two injured civilians being transported inside the ambulance were also killed.
In Chehour, an Israeli strike directly targeted an ambulance, killing two paramedics and critically wounding a third, according to Lebanon's Public Health Emergency Operations Center.
Despite an April ceasefire, Israel has continued to carry out near-daily strikes in Lebanon, while Hezbollah has launched attacks on Israeli military positions.
Meanwhile, Israeli army chief Eyal Zamir on Wednesday said that there is currently no ceasefire in Lebanon for the Israeli troops, according to a statement issued by the Israel Defense Forces.
Speaking during a visit to the Israeli Navy's Haifa base, he added that the Israeli army is working to maximize the operational freedom granted to it and will seize every opportunity to remove threats to Israeli civilians and troops.
According to Lebanon's health authorities, the cumulative toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon between March 2 and June 3 had risen to 3,516 people killed and 10,674 injured. ■
