Lebanon toll on the rise

Eight bodies have been found on the roads of southern Lebanon as Israel continues its wave of air raids on the area.

Rescuers says dozens of people are buried under rubble in Tyre

The eight dead included a couple and their three children found in their car which had been destroyed by a missile near the southern city of Tyre.

The three other civilians were killed by shrapnel, their bodies also found on roads near Tyre, the civil defence chief in southern Lebanon, Salam Daher, said.
 
At least 438 people have been killed, including 367 civilians, in Lebanon by the Israeli military offensive so far.

Rescue workers say dozens more civilians, including a large number of children, are still buried underneath the rubble of houses destroyed in attacks around Tyre.

The Lebanese health minister has said the recovery of bodies in the south could take the toll to more than 600.

The Israeli military said it hit several Hezbollah targets including a missile launchpad it suspected was used to fire a new type of missile that landed in the northern Israeli town of Afula.

Missiles and shells were also fired into the Bekaa Valley targeting a bridge and vehicles, Aljazeera’s correspondent said.

Border fighting

Israeli forces pulled back from positions on the outskirts of the Lebanese border town of Bint Jbeil that has been the scene of heavy fighting, Lebanese police said on Saturday.

Seven Israeli soldiers were wounded in recent fighting.

Israeli troops have faced fierce opposition around Bint Jbeil
Israeli troops have faced fierce opposition around Bint Jbeil

Israeli troops have faced fierce
 opposition around Bint Jbeil

Tanks and armoured vehicles left the hills overlooking the town and returned to Marun al-Ras, which was captured by Israeli forces on July 23, police said.

Israel continued to bombard Bint Jbeil and nearby Aitarun from Marun al-Ras.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said Israeli troops “have modified their deployment because of the developments on the ground”.

Israel lost nine soldiers in fighting around Bint Jbeil and a neighbouring village last week in its biggest single-day toll of the conflict.

Hezbollah fighters

On Friday, the military said it had killed 26 Hezbollah fighters during the operation near the town.

Huge numbers of Lebanese civilians are still fleeing the border villages heading towards Tyre and Sidon.

UN humanitarian co-ordinator Jan Egeland has called for a 72-hour truce to allow casualties to be evacuated and food and medicine to be sent into the area as fears of a humanitarian crisis grow.

Source: Al Jazeera, News Agencies