Consecutive Israeli strikes kill 4 Lebanese medics as Israel-Hezbollah war grinds on

1 of 7 |  3 different teams of paramedics were struck on Wednesday in southern Lebanon, the health ministry said, as Israel pressed ahead with its aerial and ground war in the country.
2 of 7 |  Hope and skepticism: mixed feelings on the two sides of the border as Lebanon and Israel hold talks

3 of 7 |  Israeli army vehicles and bulldozers operate in southern Lebanon, as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, April 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

4 of 7 |  Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on the village of Qlaileh, as seen from the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

5 of 7 |  Relatives of Ghadir Baalbaki, 19, who was killed on Tuesday in an Israeli airstrike, mourn during her funeral in the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

6 of 7 |  An Israeli soldier stands atop an artillery unit as it fires toward southern Lebanon from northern Israel, Wednesday, April 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

7 of 7 |  This is a locator map for Lebanon with its capital, Beirut. (AP Photo)

BY  MALAK HARB AND ISABEL DEBRE
Updated 7:19 AM EEST, April 16, 2026
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TYRE, Lebanon (AP) — The Israeli military killed four Lebanese rescue workers and wounded six others in three consecutive, targeted strikes Wednesday, paramedic groups said, a stark illustration of the human cost of the Israeli military campaign against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon a day after the two countries held historic talks in Washington.

The back-to-back Israeli attacks on the southern village of Mayfadoun, near the bigger town of Nabatiyeh, hit the first group of medics responding to a distress call from wounded civilians, a second group trying to assist their wounded colleagues and a third group rushing to aid the first two teams that had been targeted.

The Israeli military did not respond to a request for comment on the strikes beyond saying it was “looking into” what happened. It has previously accused the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group of using ambulances as cover for militant activities, without offering evidence.


The Lebanese Health Ministry condemned the attacks as a “blatant violation” of international law.

Abou Haidar Hayya, an official with the Islamic Health Committee involved in the rescue operation, said he feared such direct targeting of medics meant that “there are no more red lines in this war.”

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“Ambulances are protected under all international laws and conventions. It is forbidden to target them. And when those prohibitions collapse, we have nothing left,” he said by phone from the health center in Nabitiyeh.

Since the Israel-Hezbollah war began on March 2, at least 91 Lebanese medical workers have been killed by Israel, the ministry said, underscoring the intensity of the ongoing strikes and strain on Lebanon’s health system. The overall death toll from the war in Lebanon jumped to 2,167 on Wednesday.

A succession of Israeli attacks on medics
Israel first struck a team from Lebanon’s Islamic Health Committee, a major healthcare provider that is affiliated with Hezbollah’s political movement, killing two paramedics, the group said. A second team from the committee headed to the site and was struck in another Israeli attack that wounded three medical workers, the ministry reported.

The Nabatiyeh Emergency Services as well as the Islamic Risala Scout Association, a paramedic group affiliated with the Amal movement, a Hezbollah ally, mounted a third rescue attempt. They were hit by a strike that killed two more medics.

Most of the wounded medics remain in moderate condition except for one medic in serious condition after being hit in the chest by shrapnel, the Islamic Health Committee said.


Footage captured by the Nabatiyeh Emergency Services and shared with The Associated Press shows the second team of medics wearing their uniforms and riding in clearly marked emergency vehicles struggling to pull their bloodied colleagues out of wrecked ambulances that had veered onto the side of the road.

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