Israeli forces carried out a series of strikes in southern Lebanon on Friday and stepped up evacuation warnings to residents, as cross-border attacks with Hezbollah continued despite a fragile and repeatedly violated ceasefire.

The escalation came as the Israeli military confirmed that one of its drones was shot down over the coastal city of Tyre earlier in the day. According to Lebanese media, the unmanned aerial vehicle was hit by an anti-aircraft missile, with footage circulating showing the aircraft falling from the sky. The Israeli army said the incident was “under investigation” and did not immediately provide further details.

In parallel with the drone incident, Israeli forces expanded their operations across multiple areas in southern Lebanon. The army carried out two controlled demolitions of houses in the towns of Bint Jbeil and Hanin early Friday morning, according to local reports.

Israeli warplanes also struck a house in the town of Touline in the Marjayoun district at dawn, followed by artillery shelling of the area. Additional airstrikes targeted the town of Khirbet Selm, which the Israeli military said was being used by Hezbollah to facilitate attacks against Israeli forces and territory.

Further south, Israeli aircraft launched a separate strike on the outskirts of Majdel Zoun in the Tyre district at dawn, while another air raid hit the heights of the Reihan area overnight, according to a correspondent for Lebanon’s National News Agency in Jezzine.

The latest round of violence followed a Hezbollah rocket barrage launched overnight toward the northern Israeli border community of Shtula. In response, the Israeli army said it struck buildings used by Hezbollah in the southern Lebanese towns of Khirbet Selm and Touline, which it said were being used to facilitate attacks against Israeli troops and territory.

Hezbollah later claimed responsibility for the Shtula rocket fire, saying it was retaliation for what it described as an Israeli violation of the ceasefire, including alleged artillery shelling in the southern Lebanese town of Yater earlier in the day.

The group also said it had carried out five additional attacks against Israeli forces deployed in southern Lebanon on Thursday, underscoring the continued intensity of hostilities despite a ceasefire framework in place since April 17, which has since been extended for three weeks.

The Israeli military, for its part, said Thursday it killed three Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon after they fired an anti-aircraft missile at an Israeli drone. The army said the missile failed to down the aircraft before the operatives were targeted.

In a separate incident the same day, the military said Hezbollah launched an explosive-laden drone at Israeli troops operating in southern Lebanon, lightly wounding one reservist soldier. Israel responded by striking Hezbollah positions in the area.

Another exchange saw Hezbollah fire rockets toward Israeli forces near Aynata, close to Bint Jbeil. The Israeli army said some of the rockets landed near troops but caused no casualties.

The Israeli military also said it destroyed two prepared Hezbollah rocket launchers in southern Lebanon during operations on Thursday, calling the group’s actions “blatant violations of the ceasefire understandings.”

On Friday, the Israeli military said Hezbollah launched additional explosive-laden drones targeting Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. It added that the drones detonated near troops in the village of Qantara, within the Israeli-held security zone, without causing injuries.

The military also reported striking surveillance equipment at a Hezbollah rocket-launching site in the southern town of Kounine earlier in the day, saying the equipment posed “a direct threat to the forces operating in the area.”

In another development, the Israeli military said it intercepted a Hezbollah drone launched from Lebanon before it crossed into Israeli territory, triggering sirens in several communities in the Western Galilee. 

The Israeli army also released footage it said shows Hezbollah using ambulances for military purposes, including transporting weapons and operatives. According to the military, weapons were discovered inside ambulances bearing the logo of the Risala Scout Association, a paramedic group affiliated with the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement.

The military accused Hezbollah of “systematically and repeatedly” exploiting medical vehicles and facilities to conceal activity, including using ambulances to move fighters and weapons in violation of international law protections.

The Israeli army said that during a recent incident, several armed Hezbollah operatives were killed in the Qantara area after violating ceasefire terms. Subsequent searches reportedly uncovered an ambulance containing explosives, mortar shells, magazines, and a grenade.

In another case this month, troops from the 7th Armored Brigade killed a Hezbollah operative armed with a rocket-propelled grenade near an ambulance. The army said weapons were later found inside the vehicle, which it claimed had been used to support attacks from a “protected” position.

Additional footage released by the military allegedly shows Hezbollah fighters fleeing strike zones and later being evacuated by ambulances. The Israeli military said the group has increasingly relied on medical vehicles to move operatives between locations, particularly as Israeli warnings to civilians ahead of strikes have made concealment more difficult.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military ordered residents of the southern Lebanese town of Deir Aames to evacuate following rocket fire launched from the area.

“Due to Hezbollah’s terror activities and the launching [of rockets] from the village, the Israeli army is compelled to act against it in your area of residence,” military spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee said in a statement.

He urged residents to leave immediately and move at least one kilometre away from the village, which lies outside the Israeli-designated security zone in southern Lebanon.