BEIRUT (AP) — An Israeli airstrike on central Beirut on Thursday left two smoldering neighborhoods, killing 22 people and injuring dozens, the Lebanese Health Ministry said, as well as Iranian aid in Lebanon. The bloody conflict between Hezbollah militants and Israel has further escalated.
The air raid on central Beirut, the deadliest in more than a year of war, appeared to simultaneously target two residential buildings in separate districts, according to an Associated Press photographer at the scene. That’s what it means. One apartment building collapsed and the lower floor of another building was completely destroyed.
The Israeli military said it was investigating the reported attack. Israeli airstrikes are far more frequent in Beirut’s dense southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has many operational bases.
After the airstrike, Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV reported that an attempt to kill Wafik Safa, a senior security official of the group, had failed. Safa did not enter any of the targeted buildings.
Thursday’s attack follows a year of tit-for-tat exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel that escalated into an all-out war in recent weeks, with Israel carrying out heavy airstrikes and launching a ground invasion across Lebanon. Hezbollah has expanded its rocket attacks into densely populated areas deep inside Israel, causing few casualties but disrupting daily life.
The attack, which occurred on the same day Israeli forces opened fire on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, wounding two of them, drew widespread condemnation and prompted Italy’s defense ministry to summon the Israeli ambassador in protest.
Israeli airstrikes hit central Beirut
Witnesses reported that two areas of Beirut, Ras al-Nabaa and Burj Abi Haidar, were damaged, with dozens of ambulances and people gathered among the rubble.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 22 people were killed and 117 injured, but did not provide details on their identities. Recent Israeli airstrikes in areas adjacent to Beirut, particularly in the densely populated southern suburbs, killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and other senior commanders.
In support of Hamas and the Palestinians, Hezbollah began firing rockets at Israel on October 8, 2023, triggering Israeli airstrikes in retaliation.
Hezbollah continued its rocket attacks on Israel on Thursday, triggering air raid sirens in parts of northern Israel. According to the military, several drones heading towards Israel were intercepted.
Iran supports Hamas, Hezbollah, and other armed groups across the region. launched about 180 ballistic missiles toward Israel last week in retaliation for the killings of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.
Israeli Defense Minister Job Gallant said on Wednesday about the response to Iran’s missile attack: It would be “deadly” and “amazing.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not provide further details when he met with President Joe Biden.
Asked about the recent airstrikes in Lebanon, US Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters in Las Vegas: “Regarding both what’s happening in Lebanon and, of course, what’s happening in Gaza, we need a ceasefire.” must be reached.” We are working around the clock in that regard, but we have to end the war and we have to make sure that what is happening in the region is quelled. ”
Ahead of the latest attack, Lebanese crisis response forces said 28 people had been killed in Israeli attacks over the past day, bringing the total number of people killed in Lebanon since the outbreak of civil war in October last year to 2,169. announced.
Hezbollah attacks have killed 28 civilians and 39 Israeli soldiers both in northern Israel since October 2023 and in southern Lebanon since Israel launched its ground invasion on September 30. Israel says the incursion has so far been concentrated in a small area along the border, aiming to push back the militants so tens of thousands of Israelis can return to their homes in the north.
UN peacekeepers drawn into escalating fighting in Lebanon
The UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, said in a statement that its headquarters and positions had been “repeatedly attacked” by Israeli forces.
The newspaper reported that Israeli tanks fired “directly” at the observation tower of military headquarters in the Lebanese town of Nakoura, and soldiers attacked a nearby bunker where peacekeepers were taking shelter, damaging vehicles and communications systems. announced that it had been given. An Israeli drone was reportedly seen flying towards the entrance to the bunker.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said two UNIFIL soldiers injured in the attack and hospitalized were Indonesian.
The Israeli military confirmed Thursday that it had opened fire on a U.N. base in southern Lebanon and said it had ordered peacekeepers to “remain in a protected space.”
Later on Thursday, the United Nations peacekeeping chief said the 300 front-line peacekeepers on Lebanon’s southern border would be temporarily moved to larger bases, with plans to move another 200 due to security concerns as the conflict escalates. He said it depends on the situation. Jean-Pierre Lacroix told an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council that UNIFIL peacekeepers remain in their positions but are unable to patrol due to air and ground attacks.
UNIFIL has more than 10,000 peacekeepers from dozens of countries and was established to oversee the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon after Israel’s 1978 invasion. After the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, the United Nations expanded its mandate, authorizing peacekeepers to: Patrol the buffer zone set up along the border.
Israel accuses Hezbollah of setting up fighting facilities along the border in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions that ended the 2006 war.
The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, slammed Israel’s attack on UNIFIL positions, calling it an “unjustifiable and unacceptable act.”
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crossetto, who deploys about 1,000 soldiers as part of UNIFIL, went further, saying Israel had deliberately targeted UNIFIL bases in southern Lebanon for attacks, calling it a “war crime. “It may constitute a.”
Several other countries also condemned Israel’s attack, including France, Spain and Jordan.
Support group announces death of staff member during school strike
Despite attention shifting to the close battle between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon Amid rising tensions with Iran, Israel continues to carry out attacks on suspected targets of Palestinian militants across the Gaza Strip.
Early on Thursday, Israeli forces attacked a school sheltering displaced people. in central Gaza At least 27 people died, Palestinian medical officials said. The Israeli military said it targeted Palestinian militants, but those evacuated said the airstrike hit a meeting of aid workers.
According to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where the bodies were taken, the dead included one child and seven women. An Associated Press reporter saw an ambulance enter the hospital and counted the bodies, many of which arrived in pieces.
The Israeli military said, without providing evidence, that it had targeted an extremist center inside the school. Israel has repeatedly attacked schools used as shelters in the Gaza Strip, accusing militants of hiding there.
“There were no extremists. Hamas did not exist,” said Iftikhar Hammouda, who fled northern Gaza early in the war.
“We went to the tents. They bombed the tents… They bombed us on the streets too. In the market they bombed us. At school they bombed us. I did,” she said. “Where should I go?”
Israel’s offensive in Gaza began after a Hamas attack on October 7 in which the militants stormed into Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Approximately 250 people were abducted..
More than 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks, according to local health officials, who do not distinguish between militants and civilians. war destroyed large areas of Gaza Approximately 90% of the population of 2.3 million people was evacuated. often multiple times.
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This article has been edited to remove the reference to the “eight-story” apartment complex that collapsed in Beirut. It is unknown how many floors the building had.
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Mr. Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip and Mr. Magdy from Cairo. Edith Lederer contributed from New York and Darlene Superville from Las Vegas.
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