Around 5:40 AM on Monday, September 30th, five civilians  Ali Muhammad Zein, Ali Hassan Hammoud, Ali Muhammad Abbas, Jaafar Fahd Asaad, Hassan Qasim Alaa El-Din, and a likely militant,  Hilal Melhem Zein, were killed following an alleged Israeli airstrike on the Islamic Health Authority facility in the town of Sahmar, West Bekaa, Eastern Lebanon. All those killed were reportedly working as paramedics.

Lebanon News was the first to report the incident on its Telegram channel at 5:40 AM, writing about “a number of martyrs.”

A video shared by Mehr News Arabic shows the aftermath of the incident, with the Health Center’s structure completely destroyed, and fires still burning. The Center was only identifiable by the ambulances parked in an adjacent structure that remained intact. Another video, posted on Abdul Kader Albay’s Facebook page, depicted a similar scene: a large fire consuming what appears to be a truck—possibly an ambulance—while other ambulances were parked in the nearby structure. A third video, shared by EccoWatan, showed the site in daylight hours after the fires were contained, revealing the full extent of the devastation. Almost nothing remained of the Islamic Health Authority facility.

Several media outlets, including Lebanon News, reported on the event, sharing posts, photographs, and videos that documented the debris and the spread of fires following the strike. Reports indicate that the attack took place at dawn, consistent with visual evidence from photographs and videos.

Najwa Melhem Zein shared on Facebook a photo collage of the paramedics. This collage showed them with a special emblem identifying them as members of the Islamic Health Authority. The Islamic Health Authority is a civil defense group that is associated with Hezbollah. While Hezbollah operates an active militant wing, its political presence is also deeply enmeshed within the state, providing social and organizational services, primarily in the Shia’a majority areas in Southern Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley, and the suburbs of Beirut. The presence of the Islamic Health Authority alone cannot be used to determine if an individual or community is affiliated with Hezbollah’s armed wing.

Instead, Airwars’ researchers look through open source content, including testimony from relatives and friends, to assess likelihood of civilian status for the purposes of categorisation.

Haydar Taany shared a photo of Jaafar Fahd Asaad in his graduation gown while Abu Hilal shared a martyr picture for Jaafa. In the image, Jaafar is depicted in a military uniform. Text on the image reads, “Mujahed Jfad Asaad”. The image appears to have been manipulated, indicating a collage of Jaafa’s head on a bust in military uniform. Airwars understands from local sources that this practice of memorialisation does not necessarily mean that the depicted individual belongs to an armed group or participated in military activities, with this evidenced by similar memorialisation among very young boys and civilians. With no other sources directly tying Jaafar to militant activities and the manipulation of the image of Jaafa in uniform, Airwars has recorded him as a civilian. This will be updated should additional information become available.

Open sources were more definitive in linking Hilal Melhem Zein to militant activities, with some images, including one posted by Zahraa Yosof, representing Hilal in a military uniform holding a gun. In an image shared by Khadije Elkechen, he is seen wearing a scarf with a Hezbollah logo. With these sources in mind, Airwars has recorded Hilal as a militant. This will be updated should additional information become available.

Friends and family provided further testimonies to others killed in the strike. Ahmad Zein posted an emotional video with several photos of Hassan Qasim Alaa El-Din, depicting him in various settings, including in his paramedic uniform, highlighting his active community involvement and the widespread affection for him, as seen in numerous tributes, especially from his fiancée, Facebook user Ghadeer AD. In one of the posts Ghadeer wrote: “You broke our hearts, I swear.” In another post she shared her grief over the loss of her beloved: “It’s over, Hassan, you left us and fled? ? How can we stay up late? With whom do I want to joke and laugh, you sweet laugh? And your hot life has died. The talk has stopped. We want joy after you, and our hot soul has stopped. Your eyes are the most beautiful eyes and your laugh is the most beautiful laugh. You will remain in our hearts forever, oh Groom, my little one?? God be with you, my soul.. We will miss you so much, you flower of the neighborhood’s youth..?”

The late Hassan was a young man with hazel eyes, brown hair, and a brown beard.

Ali Hassan Hammoud was honoured by his brother, Mohammad Hammoud, who wrote: “I present to you my brother, my strength, my support, my love, my companion, and the joy of my life—a martyr, a brave hero.”

Given the extensive evidence of the strike and the confirmed loss of life, with multiple sources attributing the attack to Israeli forces, Airwars has assessed the strike status as “likely”, and civilian harm status has been classified as “fair”.

Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Israeli military.