Israel’s air force conducted an airstrike on a southern suburb of Beirut on Thursday afternoon, according to the military, amidst escalating tensions in southern Lebanon. The target of the strike in the suburb of Choueifat was not immediately identified. Videos from the area, near Beirut’s international airport, showed white smoke rising from a residential neighborhood.
Tensions have been on the rise in the south, with Israeli troops crossing the Litani River, a strategic boundary they have used, leading to large areas under Israeli military control despite a ceasefire brokered by Washington on April 17.
This recent attack was the first close to the Lebanese capital since May 6 when an Israeli strike killed a military official from Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Forces in another suburb. Overnight strikes by Israel in southern Lebanon, including in Tyre, resulted in at least 14 deaths as the conflict with Hezbollah continued.
Prior to these attacks, Israel had issued warnings to eight buildings and surrounding neighborhoods in Tyre, prompting many residents to flee the area. According to the Lebanese Health Ministry and the state-run National News Agency, dozens were injured in the strikes.
Meanwhile, an Israeli soldier was killed in a Hezbollah drone attack in northern Israel, with two reservists sustaining injuries.
On Thursday afternoon, the Israeli military issued another evacuation warning for Tyre and its suburbs. Tyre, one of the world’s oldest metropolises, boasts several archaeological sites, including Roman baths, a colonnaded road, a Roman residential quarter, and more, officially declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.
Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi expressed deep concern over the ongoing Israeli attacks on Tyre. The escalation follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement of an expansion in military operations in Lebanon, triggered by Hezbollah’s use of exploding drones targeting Israeli troops.
Lebanese and Israeli military officials are scheduled to hold their first security talks in Washington, extending a ceasefire that began on April 17. Despite the intensifying attacks, Hezbollah has dismissed the talks, endorsing Iran as a key ally in ending the conflict in Lebanon.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer stated that Israel would deepen its operations in Lebanon, aiming to protect northern Israeli communities. The ongoing U.S.-mediated negotiations with Lebanon seek to disarm Hezbollah and establish a peace agreement for regional security and stability.
In Sidon, an Israeli drone strike on an apartment building housing displaced families resulted in five deaths and 21 injuries, including five children. In Adloun, a drone strike on a fleeing family in a car led to six fatalities, including two children and their parents. The conflict has also claimed the life of a Lebanese soldier in Nabatiyeh in an Israeli drone strike.
Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for numerous drone and rocket attacks targeting Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and northern Israel. The conflict has displaced over one million people in Lebanon, with casualties on both sides. Netanyahu’s office reported casualties among Israeli soldiers and civilians due to the escalating violence.