Israeli strikes on central Beirut kill at least six, with further raids reported on Hezbollah’s southern suburbs as cross-border conflict escalates
BEIRUT: Israeli strikes on central Beirut early Wednesday killed at least six people, according to Lebanese authorities.
Local media reported one strike hit an apartment in the densely populated Zuqaq al-Blat neighbourhood. This area is close to government headquarters and several embassies.
Another strike reportedly hit the central Basta district. Both are densely populated areas that have been targeted before.
Lebanon’s health ministry reported a preliminary toll of six dead and 24 wounded from the two strikes. It added that human remains at one scene would require DNA testing for identification.
AFP correspondents in Beirut heard the sound of several explosions early Wednesday. Lebanese media also reported strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a stronghold of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
The Israeli military had issued an evacuation warning before a strike in Zuqaq al-Blat last week. No such warning was issued before this latest raid, according to reports.
Early Wednesday, Israel’s army also warned it would strike a building in Aaqbiyeh, near the coastal city of Sidon. Late Tuesday, it issued an evacuation order for most of the southern city of Tyre and surrounding areas.
Bilal Kashmar, media coordinator for Tyre’s disaster management unit, told AFP there was panic after the warning. He said many families had remained despite previous Israeli evacuation calls.
On Tuesday, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported Israeli strikes on various locations. The health ministry reported four dead in a strike in Baalbek and four Syrians dead in a strike on Jibsheet.
Israel said late Tuesday it had struck sites “throughout Lebanon”. It said it was targeting Hezbollah rocket launching infrastructure after air raid sirens sounded in northern Israel.
Hezbollah said it had launched a wave of attacks. The group entered the conflict on March 2, launching rockets towards Israel.
According to Lebanese authorities, Israeli strikes have killed 912 people since March 2. More than one million people have registered as displaced, with over 130,000 in official shelters.
Israel’s military on Tuesday renewed its call for residents to evacuate a region stretching more than 40 kilometres from the Lebanon-Israel border. It announced “limited” ground operations were underway in the south a day earlier.
