At least five killed, including mayor, in Israeli strikes on Nabatiyeh municipality

The mayor of Nabatiyeh was among at least five people killed Wednesday in Israeli strikes on the municipality of the southern Lebanese city.

"The mayor of Nabatiyeh, among others... was martyred. It's a massacre," Nabatiyeh governor Howaida Turk told AFP, adding he had been in the municipality building.

Hezbollah-affiliated rescuers also said several people were killed in the strike on the municipality building including mayor Ahmad Kahil.

Israel carried out Wednesday 11 air strikes on Nabatiyeh and surrounding areas in south Lebanon, days after strikes destroyed the southern city's marketplace.

"For now, 11 strikes have mainly hit Nabatiyeh but also its surroundings," Nabatiyeh governor Howaida Turk told AFP when asked about Israeli strikes, adding that the intense raids "formed a kind of belt of fire" in the area.

The health ministry said five people were killed in the strikes. The mayor of Nabatiyeh and local government staff were in the building.

"The Israeli enemy raid... on two buildings, that of the Nabatiyeh municipality and the union of municipalities, killed five people in a preliminary toll," the ministry said in a statement, adding rescuers were searching for survivors under the rubble.

The Israeli army said its forces hit Hezbollah targets embedded among civilians, without providing evidence.

"The IDF army struck dozens of Hezbollah terrorist targets in the Nabatiyeh area and dismantled underground infrastructure used by Hezbollah's Radwan Forces in southern Lebanon," the army said in a statement.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned the strikes on Nabatiyeh, saying they intentionally targeted a municipality meeting.

Mikati "condemned the new Israeli aggression against civilians in the city of Nabatiyeh, which deliberately targeted a meeting of the municipal council that was discussing the city's services and relief situation," he said in a statement.