UN special rapporteur accuses Israel of targeting civilians in southern Lebanon

Francesca Albanese, UN's special rapporteur on Palestine, sharply criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's assertion that Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon were solely aimed at Hezbollah, calling the claim false.

"Like the Palestinians, the Lebanese know that you are lying," Albanese said in a social media post on Monday, accusing Israel's leadership of being "unscrupulous" and using violence to maintain power and advance a "settler-colonial agenda."

She suggested Israeli society might be "too hurt, traumatized or indoctrinated" to see alternatives to endless warfare.

Albanese also questioned why Netanyahu has not yet faced justice for war crimes, stating that both Palestinians and Lebanese may be wondering "why you are not in the Hague yet," referring to the Dutch city that hosts both the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.

Israel has launched a barrage of airstrikes into southern and eastern Lebanon, with Lebanese health authorities saying that at least 492 people have been killed, including 35 children, and 1,645 injured in the attacks since Monday morning, which have also forced thousands of civilians to flee their homes.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the beginning of Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed over 41,400 people, the majority of whom are women and children, following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.