Second-oldest Evangelical church in Syria and Lebanon bombed by Israel

Israel bombed the historical National Evangelical Church in Alma al-Shaab, southern Lebanon, on Wednesday, marking the third Lebanese church targeted since the beginning of cross-border clashes on 8 October.

The house of the church's priest was hit directly by an Israeli shell, damaging the roof and several rooms within the home. The exterior of the church was also lightly damaged by shrapnel.

No one was injured in the shelling.

The National Evangelical Church was built in 1860 and is the second-oldest evangelical church in Lebanon and Syria.

"This is the first time that Israel bombs in the centre of Alma al-Shaab; usually, it's on the outskirts. It's concerning that the first thing they bombed was a church," Father Rabih Taleb, the priest of the National Evangelical Church, told The New Arab.

The town of Alma al-Shaab sits on the Lebanese-Israeli border and has a population of about 1,000 people during the winter.

The majority of the population fled when cross-border fighting between Hezbollah and Israel started on 8 October in the wake of Hamas's surprise attack on southern Israel the day prior.

Around 80-100 people still remain in the town despite sporadic bombings, the town's mayor, Jean Ghafari, told TNA.

"Around ten homes have been directly hit, but thank god, until now, no one has been injured," Ghafari said.

Israel has struck three churches in southern Lebanon over the last three months, including the historic Deir Mimas monastery, which was built in 1404. Multiple mosques have also been hit in southern Lebanon.

Fighting has displaced over 80,000 residents from southern Lebanon, while a similar number have fled northern Israel. Clashes have generally stayed within three kilometres of the border but have steadily escalated with time.

On Tuesday, Israel carried out a punishing series of strikes in southern Lebanon, including over 20 airstrikes on the border town of Houla alone.

Videos from the town of Houla showed a crater over a meter deep and several meters across, with a resident saying that Israel had targeted the house of him and his brothers.

Over 190 people have been killed in southern Lebanon, including over 140 Hezbollah fighters and over 20 civilians, according to Agency French Press. In northern Israel, nine soldiers and six civilians have been killed, according to authorities – though Hezbollah claims it has killed more.

Israel has demanded that Hezbollah withdraw its fighters around 30 kilometres from the Lebanese-Israeli border, or else it has threatened that it will remove the group by force.

The US envoy tasked with mediating between Hezbollah and Israel has reportedly proposed that Hezbollah withdraw its fighters seven kilometres from the border.

Hezbollah has said that it will not enter into negotiations over its presence in southern Lebanon until a ceasefire in Gaza is achieved.