Israel and Hezbollah continue attacks as US plans talks

The Israeli military and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia in Lebanon continued to exchange fire on Saturday, Lebanon's state news agency reported.

There were Israeli airstrikes early in the morning in the region around Nabatiyeh in the south of the country, the agency reported. Three people were killed when a residential building was destroyed, it said.

There were attacks in other parts of the south, according to the report. An Israeli army spokesman said the reports were being examined.

Israel's military said it is continuing to thwart Hezbollah attacks and published videos of attacks on Hezbollah rocket launchers that it said had been destroyed as well as of Hezbollah fighters who it said were fired on after launching rockets at Israel. Hezbollah, for its part, again claimed attacks on Israeli positions.

The intensity of the mutual attacks has recently eased following a large-scale wave of attacks by the Israeli military in Lebanon. According to authorities, more than 300 people were killed.

US President Donald Trump is said to have then urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reduce the attacks.

The US State Department will host talks between Lebanon and Israel next week, with the aim of reaching a ceasefire and starting formal negotiations between Israel and Lebanon mediated by the US, sources in Beirut said.

Israel is willing to hold talks with Lebanon but not negotiations on a pause in fighting with Hezbollah, according to a report by the US news portal Axios.

According to the US and Israel, the fighting in Lebanon is not covered by the temporary ceasefire agreed between Washington and Tehran to halt the war in Iran. Tehran rejects that and says the agreement includes Lebanon. US and Iranian representatives gathered in Islamabad on Saturday for high-level peace talks.