The airstrike on Ain al-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in Lebanon, marks a significant escalation as Israel claims to have targeted a Hamas training center while Palestinian officials decry a massacre of civilians.
SIDON, Lebanon — The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a deadly airstrike on Tuesday evening targeting the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the southern coastal city of Sidon. The attack left at least 13 people dead and dozens wounded, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, raising tensions in a region already strained by fragile ceasefire agreements.
The strike hit a densely populated area near the Khalid bin al-Walid mosque, specifically targeting a parking lot and a vehicle. The state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported that ambulances struggled to reach the scene through the camp’s narrow, crowded alleys as Israeli warplanes continued to fly at low altitude overhead.
The IDF confirmed the operation in a statement released shortly after the explosion, asserting that the strike had targeted a “Hamas training compound” embedded within the civilian infrastructure of the camp. According to the Israeli military, the site was being used by Hamas operatives to plan and orchestrate attacks against Israeli troops and the State of Israel. “The IDF is operating against Hamas’s entrenchment in Lebanon and will continue to operate against Hamas terrorists wherever they operate,” the statement read.
However, this narrative was swiftly rejected by Palestinian officials and residents on the ground. Hamas issued a statement dismissing the Israeli claims as “pure fabrications and lies.” The group maintained that it has no military installations in Lebanon’s refugee camps and asserted that the targeted location was an open sports field frequented by local youth.
Ain al-Hilweh is the largest of the 12 Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, known for its dense population and complex internal politics. While the camp has witnessed internal factional fighting in the past, direct Israeli airstrikes deep inside the camp are relatively rare and represent a significant expansion of the current conflict’s scope.
The attack on Sidon was not the only incident reported on Tuesday. Earlier in the day, an Israeli drone strike in the Bint Jbeil district killed Ali Cheaito, an employee of the Union of Bint Jbeil Municipalities, while he was in his vehicle. Another strike in the border town of Blida claimed the life of one civilian, further highlighting the intensity of the Israeli campaign in southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire that was technically agreed upon in late 2024.
Diplomatic sources indicate that the persistence of these strikes reflects Israel’s determination to prevent armed groups, whether Hezbollah or Hamas, from rebuilding their military capabilities in the south. The ongoing violence has drawn sharp criticism from the Lebanese government, which accuses Israel of systematically violating the country’s sovereignty and the terms of the truce.
As rescue workers continued to sift through the rubble in Ain al-Hilweh late Tuesday, the death toll was expected to rise. The incident threatens to further destabilize the delicate security situation in Lebanon, where the presence of armed factions and the ongoing war on the border have created a volatile mix.
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