A funeral was held in the southern Lebanese village of Saksakiyeh for Jawad Younes, an 11-year-old boy, and his uncle, Ragheb Younes, 41, who were killed in an Israeli air strike. The two were laid to rest on Saturday, a day after their family compound was hit in a strike that killed two and injured several others. The incident adds to the growing toll of the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

Impact on Local Families

More than 1. 100 people have been killed in the escalation of violence, with civilians increasingly caught in the crossfire, according to Lebanese health officials — the strike on the Younes family home occurred shortly after 13:00 local time on Friday, while Jawad was playing football with his nine cousins. His father. Hussein Younes. Stood in front of the ruins of their home and said he did not understand why the Israeli military had targeted the house.

‘If this was a military base. No kids would be here,’ he told the BBC. The family said they had no military ties to Hezbollah, and multiple family members and local officials confirmed this. Five people survived the attack. And those wounded were taken to a nearby hospital, including Jawad’s aunt Zeinab, who is being treated for a broken spine and a fractured leg.

Funeral Amid Ongoing Strikes

The funeral procession for Jawad and Ragheb took place in Saksakiyeh, where hundreds gathered in the town center. Women in black robes wailed over the bodies, one of which was draped in Hezbollah’s yellow flag. Jawad’s mother, Malak Meslmani, sat beside her son’s body and said he had always wanted to resist Israel.

‘My son is gentle and pure,’ she told the BBC. ‘He loved the idea of martyrdom, and when he grew up, he wanted to be with the resistance. He wanted to resist the enemy Israel who killed him.’

The funeral took place as the sound of Israeli air strikes echoed in the distance, and plumes of smoke rose above nearby hilltops. The Israeli military did not respond to requests for comment on the intended target of the strike that hit the Younes family compound.

Escalating Violence and Civilian Casualties

Jaward and Ragheb’s burial came just a day after another family in the same neighborhood buried two children and their mother, who were also killed in Israeli bombardment. On Saturday, three Lebanese journalists were killed in what authorities described as a targeted Israeli strike on their media vehicle, including Ali Shoeib, a correspondent for Al Manar TV, a station affiliated with Hezbollah.

The Israeli army described Shoeib as a Hezbollah member who had been exposing Israeli military positions in southern Lebanon, without providing evidence to support the claims. Lebanon’s President, Joseph Aoun, condemned the attack as a ‘blatant crime’ that violated all norms under which journalists should be protected during war.

Human rights groups have raised concerns about Israel’s repeated attacks on healthcare workers in Lebanon, with an Israeli air strike killing five paramedics in the town of Zoutar on Saturday. The UN’s refugee agency warned that Lebanon is facing a worsening humanitarian crisis, with more than one million people now displaced.

Since 2 March, Israeli air strikes have battered towns and villages across Lebanon, while ground forces continue to advance in the south as part of an ongoing offensive. Israel says its operations are aimed at Hezbollah targets, but civilians are frequently among those killed.

Many, like the surviving members of the Younes family, say they are willing to pay the price. ‘We are not afraid of the war, because we are not afraid of death,’ said Zainab’s son Ali, referring to the ongoing conflict.