Hamas condemns Israeli massacre in Lebanon's Sidon, says claims false
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Hamas condemns an Israeli occupation massacre in southern Lebanon's Ain al-Hilweh, which killed 13 civilians.
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People gathering next to an ambulance as it enters the Ain el-Hilweh refugee camp in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, November 18, 2025 (AP)
A new massacre perpetrated by the Israeli occupation regime has left 13 civilians dead in a preliminary toll in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in Sidon, southern Lebanon, marking a serious escalation and a flagrant violation of the November 2024 ceasefire agreement.
According to Al Mayadeen’s correspondent, an airstrike targeted a parking lot in the densely populated camp, causing a significant number of casualties. The Lebanese Ministry of Health updated the death toll to 13 martyrs as of Tuesday evening, with the number expected to be finalized following ongoing assessments.
This marks the first assault of its kind on the camp since the so-called ceasefire took effect last year. It also comes as Beirut continues to fully comply with the ceasefire’s provisions, while the Israeli occupation persists in its attacks across southern Lebanon with absolute impunity.
Hamas issued a strongly worded statement condemning the attack as “a brutal assault on our unarmed Palestinian people and on Lebanese sovereignty.” The movement stressed that the strike hit an open sports field known to residents and frequented by young teenagers at the time of the attack.
'Israel' claims it hit 'training compound'
Responding to the Israeli occupation’s claims that the target was a “training compound,” Hamas rejected the allegations as “fabrication and lies aimed at justifying its criminal aggression and inciting hostility toward the camps and our Palestinian people.” The movement asserted that “there are no military installations in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon.”
Hamas declared that the Israeli occupation bears “full responsibility for this heinous crime against our Palestinian people and against the sisterly Lebanese state,” extending condolences to the families of the martyrs and wishing a swift recovery to the wounded. The statement honored those killed, saying it prays for “patience and comfort for their families” and healing for those injured.
The strike on Ain al-Hilweh is the third attack on Lebanon today alone. Earlier, two drone strikes targeted vehicles in Blida and Bint Jbeil, killing two civilians in total. This raises the civilian death toll on November 18, 2025, to 15 killed by the Israeli regime in a single day.
The latest assault deepens concerns that the Israeli occupation is systematically undermining the ceasefire framework through deliberate escalation against civilian areas on Lebanese territory.
Spiral of continuous aggression
Over the past few days alone, Israeli forces have carried out a series of attacks across southern and eastern Lebanon.
Some of the Israeli attacks are as follows:
On November 17, the principal of the Mansouri Public School, Mohammad Shuweikh, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the town in the Tyre district, South Lebanon, according to Al Mayadeen’s correspondent.
An Israeli Merkava tank fired on UNIFIL personnel near an Israeli-built position inside Lebanese territory, the UN's peacekeeping force in Lebanon reported on November 16.
On November 13, 2025, an Israeli drone struck a vehicle in Toul (Nabatieh), injuring one civilian. That same day, warplanes bombed the western outskirts of Tayr Felsay, and a second air strike hit the same area later that night.
In eastern Lebanon, on November 10, 2025, Israeli warplanes carried out three air raids on the Shaara Heights and the outskirts of Janta (in the Bekaa region), while simultaneously a drone struck the road between al-Dawra and al-Maali in Hermel.
Al Mayadeen’s correspondent also reported that one person was martyred following an Israeli drone strike targeting a vehicle on the highway opposite the town of al-Baysariyeh, in the Saida district of South Lebanon.
