Lebanon says Israeli strikes kill three

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes in south Lebanon killed three people on Thursday (Jun 18), according to Lebanese state media, hours after the United States and Iran signed an agreement to end the Middle East war.

"An enemy drone targeted a car" in the Kfar Tebnit area, killing two people, the official National News Agency (NNA) reported, raising an earlier toll of one dead.

In the neighbouring village of Zebdine, another drone killed one more person, NNA said.

Israel's military, meanwhile, announced the death of one of its soldiers the night before in an incident in south Lebanon that also left seven others wounded.

Since Iran and the US announced they had reached an agreement on Monday, there has been a sharp decrease in the level of violence in Lebanon.

Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group, drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in March by attacking Israel to avenge the killing of the Islamic republic's supreme leader at the start of the US-Israeli campaign.

Israel retaliated with broad strikes across Lebanon and by launching a ground invasion in the south, which borders Israel and has long been under Hezbollah's sway.

Since the agreement was announced, Hezbollah has not claimed responsibility for any new attacks against Israel.

Still, there have been limited exchanges of fire, and on Tuesday, Israeli strikes killed four people in Lebanon.

Israel has not officially commented on the US-Iran agreement.

The United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday meant to end the Middle East war, with fighting halted on all fronts, including in Lebanon.