The IDF says it targeted 250 Hezbollah operatives that day but has not provided a full list of names. Lebanon’s health ministry disputes this, saying the vast majority of those killed were civilians.
Asked what steps were taken to protect civilians, the IDF said it made “extensive efforts to mitigate harm to uninvolved individuals”.
The IDF also said that most of the targeted sites were located “within the heart of the civilian population, as part of Hezbollah’s cynical exploitation of Lebanese civilians as human shields to safeguard its operations”.
Hezbollah denies this, stating that Israel targets civilians as a pressure tactic. The group, proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the UK, US and some gulf Arab states, added that it never wanted war and is acting in self-defence.
On 8 April Israel says it hit 100 targets within 10 minutes, making it one of Lebanon’s deadliest days in decades. More than 360 people were killed, and over 1,000 injured that day, Lebanon says.
Israel called the operation Eternal Darkness. To the Lebanese people who lived through it, it is known as Black Wednesday.
Additional reporting by Jasmin Dyer and Jake Tacchi
