Columns of smoke rising from several sites bombed by Israel in Beirut's southern suburbs last night. (Credit: Mohammad Yassin/L'OLJ)
The Israeli army carried out at least ten raids on the southern suburbs of Beirut and the south of the capital from Tuesday night to Wednesday. The neighborhoods of Jamous, Roueiss, and Hadath in the southern suburbs were targeted, as well as the locality of Choueifat, which was hit at least four times. For about ten days, Israel has been regularly bombing this region as part of the intensification of its clashes with Hezbollah, which began on Oct. 8, 2023, the day after the start of the Gaza war, and which also inflamed South Lebanon and a significant part of the Bekaa Valley.
In parallel with these strikes, the Arabic-speaking spokesperson of the Israeli army was issuing evacuation notices on X. He published six, four of which were within an hour, calling residents to leave specific buildings in Hadath, Chiyah, Choueifat and Haret Hreik. Each of these messages on X is accompanied by a map where the targeted building is highlighted in red.
According to local media, a wave of departures occurred in Choueifat after the evacuation notices. According to the al-Jadeed channel, a fire broke out in four buildings following the Israeli attacks in the southern suburbs of Beirut. Additionally, according to several witnesses, drones were flying over Beirut and its surroundings at low altitudes. No human toll has been communicated so far.
Israel promised on Tuesday night that its warplanes would continue to strike "strongly" in the coming hours "in the Middle East," just after an Iranian ballistic missile attack on its territory.
While the night bombings in Lebanon raged on, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed France's willingness to act for Lebanon and "requested that Israel halt its military operations as soon as possible," according to a statement from the Élysée. The Élysée also announced that France will "soon organize a support conference for the Lebanese people and their institutions." The United States indicated their intention to "coordinate" with the Israelis a response to Iran after its missile attack on Israel and has deployed additional forces in the region.
