Israel strikes south Lebanon, killing 1 and wounding 7

BEIRUT (AP) — Israel carried out intense airstrikes on southern Lebanon early Saturday, killing one person, wounding seven and briefly cutting a highway that links Beirut with parts of south Lebanon, the Health Ministry said.

The pre-dawn airstrikes on the village of Msayleh struck a place that sold heavy machinery, destroying a large number of vehicles.

A vehicle carrying vegetables that happened to be passing by at the time of the strikes was hit, killing one person and wounding another, according to Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV.

The Health Ministry later said that the one slain was a Syrian citizen, while the wounded were a Syrian national and six Lebanese, including two women.

The Israeli military said it struck a place where machinery was stored to be used to rebuild infrastructure for the militant Hezbollah group.

Since the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war ended in late November with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, Israel has carried out almost daily airstrikes killing dozens of people. Israel accuses Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its capabilities after the group suffered heavy losses during the war.

Earlier this month, the U.N. human rights chief, Volker Türk, called for renewed efforts to bring a permanent end to hostilities in Lebanon following the war. He said that until the end of September, they have verified 103 civilians killed in Lebanon since the ceasefire.

The most recent Israel-Hezbollah war killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated $11 billion worth of destruction, according to the World Bank. In Israel, 127 people died, including 80 soldiers.

The war started when Hezbollah began firing rockets across the border on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after a deadly Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel sparked the war in Gaza. Israel responded with shelling and airstrikes in Lebanon, and the two sides became locked in an escalating conflict that became a full-blown war in late September 2024.

People gather at a site that sold heavy machinery, where a large number of vehicles were destroyed in Israeli airstrikes, in the southern village of Msayleh, Lebanon, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

People gather at a site that sold heavy machinery, where a large number of vehicles were destroyed in Israeli airstrikes, in the southern village of Msayleh, Lebanon, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

People gather at a site that sold heavy machinery, where a large number of vehicles were destroyed in Israeli airstrikes, in the southern village of Msayleh, Lebanon, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

DODOMA, Tanzania (AP) — Tanzania’s president has, for the first time since the disputed October election, commented on a six-day internet shutdown as the country went through its worst postelection violence.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Thursday expressed “sympathy” to diplomats and foreign nationals living in the country, saying the government would strive to ensure there is never a repeat of the same.

Hassan won the October election with more than 97% of the vote after candidates from the two main opposition parties were barred from running and the country’s main opposition leader remained in prison facing treason charges.

Violence broke out on election day and went on for days as the internet was shut down amid a heavy police crackdown that left hundreds of people dead, according to rights groups.

Hassan blamed the violence on foreigners and pardoned hundreds of young people who had been arrested, saying they were acting under peer pressure.

Speaking to ambassadors, high commissioners and representatives of international organizations on Thursday in the capital, Dodoma, she sought to reassure envoys of their safety, saying the government would remain vigilant to prevent a repeat of the disruption.

“To our partners in the diplomatic community and foreigners residing here in Tanzania, I express my sincere sympathy for the uncertainty, service restrictions and internet shutdowns you experienced,” she said.

Hassan defended her administration, saying the measures were taken to preserve constitutional order and protect citizens.

“I assure you that we will remain vigilant to ensure your safety and prevent any recurrence of such experiences,” the president told diplomats on Thursday.

Tanzania has, since the October elections, established a commission of inquiry to look into the violence that left hundreds dead and property worth millions of shillings destroyed in a country that has enjoyed relative calm for decades.

Foreign observers said the election failed to meet democratic standards because key opposition figures were barred.

FILE - Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan delivers remarks during a campaign rally ahead of the general elections in Iringa, Tanzania, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo, File)