Israeli strikes target the Mraijeh district in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Three Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the New York Times that the Israeli strikes targeted "a meeting of senior Hezbollah leaders, including the presumed successor to Hassan Nasrallah," Hashem Safieddine.
In its third warning of the evening, the Israeli army urged residents of Hadath to evacuate a building located near the Imam Mahdi Public School, as well as neighboring buildings.
The building is marked on the map attached to the warning posted by Avichay Adraee on X.
The Israeli air force has just conducted two strikes on Hadath, half an hour after the Israeli army issued a warning to residents of the city, urging them to leave the area immediately, particularly a building near the "Nostalgia Coffee Shop."
Several sources, including SkyNews and journalist Barak Ravid from Axios, report that the target of the latest Israeli strike is Hashem Safieddine, the head of the Hezbollah Executive Council and a potential successor to Hassan Nasrallah, though it is unclear if he has been killed.
Contacted by L’Orient-Le Jour, the Hezbollah press office was unavailable for comment.
In a statement to L’Orient-Le Jour, the director of Lebanese civil aviation, Fadi al-Hassan, confirmed that Beirut's airport is operating normally.
The Israeli army has issued a warning to the residents of Hadath, urging them to leave immediately. A building near "Nostalgia Coffee Shop" is marked on the map linked to the warning, which was posted by Avichay Adraee on X.
The targeted building is around 100 meters away from Saint-Therese Medical Center.
The Israeli army claims to have killed a Hamas official, Zahi Yasser Abdel Razak Ofi, in Tulkarem, a city in the northern West Bank. Earlier, the Palestinian Authority announced that 16 people had been killed following an Israeli strike on the Tulkarem refugee camp, where the Israeli army had reported conducting an air raid.
Several buildings were completely destroyed by Israeli raids targeting the southern suburbs, reports MTV.
An Israeli strike hit an area along the perimeter of the Beirut airport, according to a source from the Lebanese Ministry of Transport.
A series of loud explosions were heard near the airport, with columns of smoke visible nearby. Witnesses reported hearing fighter jets flying over the city at the time of the strikes, as reported by Reuters.
Very heavy strikes have just been heard in Beirut and as far as Kesrouan. Earlier, at least six Israeli strikes were carried out against the southern suburbs of Beirut.
"War could stop if Hezbollah ceased targeting us and withdrew north of the Litani," said Israel's ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, according to statements reported by several regional media outlets.
For context, U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, adopted on Aug. 11, 2006, to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah, requires Hezbollah to withdraw from areas south of the Litani River and that this region be placed under the exclusive control of the Lebanese army and UNIFIL forces.
The first three Israeli strikes targeted the same location, at the Rammal neighborhood intersection on Hadi Nasrallah highway, near the 'Wafa' bakery, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, according to al-Jadeed. Just minutes earlier, the Israeli army had issued a warning to residents of the Burj al-Barajneh neighborhood, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, urging them to leave a building near this bakery.
Two additional strikes followed afterward.
A heavy strike was heard in and around Beirut, minutes after the Israeli army issued an evacuation order.
In a statement, Hezbollah said that "the explosive devices" it used today against Israeli elite troops who were "attempting to advance near Maroun al-Ras and Yaroun" were planted in response to enemy movements. "Some were planted just hours before their detonation," the party noted, estimating that more than 20 soldiers and officers were either injured or killed in these attacks.
The Israeli army announced that it has killed Mohammad Youssef Anissi, "a senior official in Hezbollah's precision-guided missile production," according to its Arabic-speaking spokesperson Avichay Adraee in a post on X. "He was distinguished by his expertise and technological capabilities in the production of lethal means" and had been involved with the party for over 15 years, the spokesperson said.
The Israeli army has issued a warning to residents of the Burj al-Barajneh neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs, urging them to leave immediately. Two buildings are shown on the maps linked to the warning, posted by Avichay Adraee on X: one very close to the “Forn Wafa'”, the other near the Sayyed al-Shouhada mosque.
Group of Seven (G7) leaders reiterated in a statement their deep concern over the crisis in the Middle East and called on players in the region to "act responsibly" and with restraint while repeating their backing for Israel's security, according to Reuters.
"A dangerous cycle of attacks and retaliation risks fuelling an uncontrollable escalation in the Middle East, which is in no one's interest. Therefore, we call on all regional players to act responsibly and with restraint," reads the statement.
The statement called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, an unconditional release of all hostages and recalled the need for a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon.
A barrage of Hezbollah rockets targeted the port of Haifa, in northern Israel, Haaretz reports, citing the Israeli army. “Some were intercepted, others fell in open areas.”
The Israeli army says it has targeted “15 targets” in and around Beirut in the last 24 hours, says its Arabic-speaking spokesman Avichay Adraee on X. “Weapons production sites, weapons warehouses and terrorist infrastructures were attacked,” he details.
He added that the party's “intelligence headquarters” had also been targeted.
Israel has a lot of options when it comes to striking back at Iran in response to its missile attacks earlier this week, the country's ambassador to the United Nations told CNN on Thursday.
"We have a lot of options, so it's (up to) us to decide where and when we want to attack, but they are vulnerable. They know that," said Danny Danon.
Successive Israeli attacks targeted Iqlim al-Touffah, whose detonations were heard as far away as Saïda.
Latest updates from South Lebanon, according to our correspondent:
* Israel has carried out airstrikes on Khiam (Marjayoun district), one of which targeted the village's detention center, Khirbet Silm (Bint Jbeil), Aitit (Sour district), Ansar, Sinay (Nabatieh) and Kfar Hammam (Hasbaya).
* The Israeli army has also carried out airstrikes on the Islamic Health Authority's Civil Defense center in Majdal Silm (Marjayoun), without causing casualties.
* Heavy Israeli artillery shelling and machine gun fire have targeted Khiam and its plain, as well as Kfar Kila (Marjayoun).
A source close to Hezbollah says that an Israeli strike targeted a warehouse near Beirut's airport, reports AFP.
Citing "reliable field and security sources," Hezbollah said that it killed 17 Israeli officers and soldiers in today's confrontations between the party and Israel along the southern border.
So far, the Israeli army announced that an Israeli officer, Captain Ben Zion Falach, was killed in the fighting in southern Lebanon, according to Haaretz. Falach served as an officer in the Paratroopers Brigade.
Israeli warplanes targeted the villages of Majadel, Bazourieh (Sour district), Yaroun, Shaqra (Bint Jbeil) and Wadi Sluqi.
Latest updates from southern Lebanon and the Bekaa, according to our correspondents in both regions:
An Israeli drone targeted an area between the villages Zrarieh and Kauthariyet al-Rez (Saida district).
Israel struck the outskirts of the city of Baalbeck and the villages of Douris, Bodai, Sarain, Nabi Shayth, Flaway and Tamnin al-Fawqa (Baalbek district).
⚡ Israel “will not allow Hezbollah to ‘settle again’ in southern Lebanon," Israeli army chief of staff Herzi Halevi said, as cited by AFP.
New Israeli strikes have hit Beirut's southern suburbs, according to the state-run National News Agency and several local media. The strikes targeted the Hay al-Sellom neighborhood in Lailaki, according to NNA.
Hezbollah claims responsibility for a missile attack carried out at 7 p.m. on the Israeli town of Safad. The party claimed responsibility for another attack at 7:30 p.m. on a troop of Israeli soldiers in Avivim, also in northern Israel.
According to our correspondent, Hezbollah claimed today the highest number of attacks in a single day since Oct. 8.
An Israeli drone targeted a car and a motorcycle in Khirbet Silm, a village in the Bint Jbeil district in southern Lebanon, reports our correspondent. Some people were injured, but their number and condition are unknown.
Israeli raids targeted the area around Yohmor and Bodai, in the Baalbeck district, according to our correspondent in the Bekaa.
Hezbollah announced that it fired 100 Katyusha and six Falaq rockets at Metula (northern Israel), including a military site in the settlement and its orchards at 6:15 p.m.
Two Israeli airstrikes have targeted the village of Labweh (Baalbek district). One of the strikes targeted a house near an electricity company.
Israeli warplanes struck the course of the Litani River in the outskirts of the village of Yohmor (Nabatieh district).
Between 6 and 7 p.m., Israeli airstrikes targeted the village of Yaroun (Bint Jbeil district) and the square of the village of Jbaa (Nabatieh district) for the first time, according to our correspondent in the South.
Israeli artillery shelling targeted the villages of Kfar Kila, Tal al-Nahhas, Blat, Burj al-Moulouk, Odaisseh, the plain of Khiam and the course of the Kherdli river.
According to our correspondent, the Israeli strike on Chiyah in Beirut's southern suburbs targeted an apartment on the "Assaad" street, near a Lebanese Civil Defense center.
When contacted by L'Orient Today, the Civil Defense confirmed the strike was near its center.
"In defense of Lebanon and its people and in response to the Israeli aggression against cities, villages and civilians," Hezbollah said that it fired rockets at a group of Israeli soldiers in the village of Kfar Giladi in northern Israel this morning at 5:45 a.m.
🔴 A new Israeli strike has targeted an area near Chiyah, our correspondent and several local media report.
The Emir of Qatar pledges “total support” to Lebanon in the face of “brutal” Israeli attacks, reports AFP.
Five days after the targeting of the Industrial City area in Sour, the al-Rissala Scout Association managed to pull a body from under the rubble, according to our correspondent in the South.
Haaretz reports that 20 projectiles were launched from Lebanon and landed in Metula, a settlement in northern Israel, setting off fires in several areas.
⚡ The Israeli army claimed to have killed Hader Shahabieh, the "commander of the Hezbollah region of Mount Dov," in an airstrike.
According to the announcement, he had "commanded hundreds of rocket launches and anti-tank missile fire in the areas of Mount Dov, Mount Hermon, and the occupied Golan Heights, in northern Israel, and was responsible for the attacks on Majdal Shams in July, which killed 12 children and adolescents."
The Israeli army had previously claimed that Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukur, killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs on July 30, was the commander responsible for the Majdal Shams attack, in which Hezbollah denies any involvement.
In the past hour, Israeli airstrikes targeted the villages of Kounin and Yaroun (Bint Jbeil district), according to our correspondent in the South.
Moreover, the villages of Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil), Kfar Kila and Odaisseh (Marjayoun) were subjected to Israeli artillery shelling.
Israel has carried out airstrikes on the town of Khiam, the village of Taybeh (Marjayoun district) and the city Bint Jbeil, according to our correspondent in the South.
"In defense of Lebanon and its people and in response to the Israeli aggression against cities, villages and civilians," Hezbollah announced that it fired rockets at the "Sakhnin Israeli base for military industries in Haifa bay" at 4:40 p.m.
The Israeli army announced that approximately 10 rockets had been fired from Lebanon, as reported by Haaretz. Several warning sirens were heard in northern Israel.
Some of these rockets were intercepted, while others fell in open areas. Since midnight, the Israeli army stated that around 130 rockets have been launched toward Israel from Lebanon.
According to our Bekaa correspondent, Israeli airstrikes have targeted Hermel, Labweh and the Aasira neighborhood in Baalbek.
According to our correspondent in Bekaa, the airstrike that targeted the village of Temnine (Baalbek district) killed two people from the same family and injured others.
Iran has summoned the ambassadors of Germany and Austria after their governments protested the Islamic Republic's missile attack on Israel on Tuesday, state media reported.
The summonses were in response to “unacceptable measures” taken by Germany and Austria, which summoned Iranian representatives following Tehran's attack on Israel on Tuesday, Iran's official Irna agency reported.
Russia has organized a special flight from Beirut today for family members of Russian diplomats, reports Reuters.
Joe Biden stated that "nothing will happen" today regarding an Israeli response against Iran, following the missile attack launched Tuesday by the Islamic Republic against Israel.
"Nothing will happen today (Thursday)," the U.S. president said in response to a question on the matter, during a brief exchange with the press before leaving the White House for a trip to the southern United States.
According to Ynet, an Israeli news site, Israeli soldiers feared Wednesday that the body of one of their own could be taken by Hezbollah during their "ground incursion" into southern Lebanon.
"The soldiers stormed a building, and one of them, killed, fell near Hezbollah fighters," the outlet detailed. "Fearing the body would be taken, the forces quickly surrounded the building (...) while reinforcement vehicles from the al-Radwan force approached, potentially intending to take the body and flee. The vehicles were attacked from the air, and the fighters on board were eliminated."
Latest updates from southern Lebanon and the Bekaa:
* Israeli warplanes have fired missiles on houses in the center of the village of Khiam (Marjayoun district), according to our correspondent in southern Lebanon.
* Israeli airstrikes have targeted the villages of Bidnayel, Harbta, al-Bazalieh, the plain of Temnine (Baalbek district), the city of Baalbek, Riyaq (Zahleh district), Amhaz and Wadi Hanna, according to our correspondent in the Bekaa.
Hezbollah announced several new attacks against Israel "in defense of Lebanon and its people and in response to the Israeli aggression against cities, villages and civilians":
The party fired rockets at a group of Israeli soldiers in the al-Sughra area on the outskirts of the village of Odaisseh at the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Finally, the party said that it detonated four explosive devices against Israeli forces infiltrating the villages of Maroun al-Ras and Yaroun (Bint Jbeil district) today from the early morning hours until 12 p.m., causing "great and heavy losses to the enemy forces."
According to our correspondent, the two people killed in an Israeli drone attack on a vehicle in Kounin (Bint Jbeil district) were two members of the Amal Movement: Assaad Arslane and Zayn al-Abdine Khalil.
The Israeli army said it struck "the intelligence headquarters" of Hezbollah in the Beirut area.
In the afternoon, fighter jets targeted "the intelligence headquarters" of the party, according to a statement from the army, which included a low-quality video showing a strike destroying what appears to be an isolated building on a hill.
Around 2:30 p.m., a strike targeted Kayfoun, in the Aley district, in the hills above Beirut.
Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, will visit Lebanon tomorrow to meet Lebanese officials, according to local media outlets.
Following a meeting in Maarab with the head of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea, Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) MP Wael Abou Faour said: "We have defined a roadmap to get out of the current situation, which includes halting all Israeli aggressions through the implementation of Resolution 1701 and deploying the Lebanese army in the south so it can fulfill its duties alongside the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)."
"We agreed that it is urgent to elect a president, and we can take advantage of the openness of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to move things forward, as well as the need to assist displaced people," he added, as reported by several local media outlets.
Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a missile attack at 3:05 p.m. on an Israeli Merkava tank in Netu'a, an Israeli locality opposite Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil district).
The party also said it had targeted a troop of Israeli soldiers near Odaisseh (Marjayoun district) who were “on the border,” with a salvo of missiles. Hezbollah did not specify which side of the border the soldiers were on.
For the first time, the Lebanese army has retaliated to an Israeli attack on one of its centers in Bint Jbeil, near the southern border. This unprecedented gunfire follows the announcement of the killing of two Lebanese soldiers today in separate incidents. The first was killed while clearing a road with the Lebanese Red Cross in the south, and the second in the strike on the Bint Jbeil barracks.
Hezbollah carried out a series of strikes this afternoon against positions near the border:
The party struck Israeli soldiers stationed east of the town of Sasa twice, including once with a Falaq missile, Israeli troops in Shomera with a Falaq missile, a deployment in al-Bassa and the village of Avivim.
The involvement of Iran in the recent incidents near Israeli embassies in Denmark and Sweden is "a hypothesis," a Swedish intelligence services (Säpo) official said Thursday.
"There are elements that suggest this could be the case, (including) the choice of target and the modus operandi," Fredrik Hallström, a Säpo official, said during a press conference in response to a question about Iran's possible role. "But it is a hypothesis rather than a proven fact."
⚡ Hezbollah says it "detonated a Sajil mine" against Israeli soldiers "attempting a ground infiltration near the town of Yaroun," in southern Lebanon, at noon. In its statement, the party claims it caused "deaths and injuries" among them.
In another statement, Hezbollah said it "detonated a mine targeting a force from the Golani Brigade in an area of Maroun al-Ras," in southern Lebanon. This force "attempted to bypass the village from the west," and Hezbollah also claims to have caused deaths and injuries among them.
According to explanations from Al-Manar, Hezbollah's television network, the "Sajil" mine is a type of improvised explosive device developed by the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, since Oct. 7, 2023. It is made from unexploded munitions recovered from Israeli missiles. This charge contains approximately 750 metal fragments. It has notably been used in an ambush in Khan Younis against Israeli soldiers.
At the same time as the multiple Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs, an Israeli raid targeted the village of Kayfoun in the district of Aley, according to several local media. It is not yet clear what was the target of the strike.
This is the first time this locality has been targeted.
The Israeli army claims that 110 rockets have been fired from Lebanon into northern Israel, according to Haaretz. Since the morning, Hezbollah has claimed 21 operations against Israeli positions, mostly along the border. The majority of these were carried out using rockets.
⚡ A Lebanese soldier was killed "following an Israeli strike on an army center in Bint Jbeil' in southern Lebanon, the army said in a statement. It added that it had responded by firing at the source of the attack.
Emirates Airlines, one of the largest in the Middle East, announced the cancellation of its flights to Iran, Iraq, and Jordan until Saturday, amid fears of regional escalation following the Iranian attack on Israel on Tuesday.
"Emirates cancels all flights to and from Iraq (Basra and Baghdad), Iran (Tehran), and Jordan (Amman) on October 4 and 5 due to regional instability," stated the Dubai-based carrier, which also suspended its connections to these destinations on Thursday.
Regarding the strike that targeted a house in the village of Mayssara around 2:30 PM, in the heights of Kesrouan:
Civil defense and army personnel have been deployed to the site to assess potential casualties, according to information gathered by our correspondent Michel Hallak.
The Israeli air force bombed the city of Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon, according to our correspondent. He also reported a drone strike on Kounine (also in the Bint Jbeil district), which resulted in two deaths.
Regarding the strike that targeted a house in the village of Mayssara around 2:30 PM:
Civil defense and army personnel have been deployed to the site to assess potential casualties, according to information gathered by our correspondent Michel Hallak.
🔴 Beirut southern suburbs strike - update:
The Israeli strikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut targeted the Hezbollah media relations office, according to a statement reported by our correspondent,
🔴 Several consecutive strikes targeted the southern suburbs of Beirut. Explosions were heard throughout the capital and beyond.
🔴 A new Israeli strike targeted the village of Maaysra in the Kesrouan region.
This Shia area had already been struck on September 25, in a raid that resulted in several deaths, including, according to local sources, a regional official of Hezbollah. The party had never confirmed any deaths in its ranks following that attack.
Update on Israeli strike on Lebanese Red Cross convoy in southern Lebanon:
The Lebaneses Red Cross says four of its medics have been lightly injured, and that the damage done to their ambulance is minor. In a statement it said that its team was to deployed to "carry out its humanitarian mission to transport five injured people and a martyr of the Lebanese army to hospital".
🔴 A Lebanese soldier has been killed by an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese army announced. According to the military, another soldier was injured. They were in Taybeh (Marjeyoun), where they were participating in rescue operations after an Israeli strike alongside the Lebanese Red Cross. Four members of the Red Cross were also injured.
Hezbollah has announced that at dawn, it detonated two devices as an Israeli infantry unit was "attempting to infiltrate Maroun al-Ras," a border village in the Bint Jbeil district.
The statement did not mention whether this attack caused any casualties, unlike those reported yesterday, after which the Israeli army acknowledged the death of eight of its soldiers. Earlier in the day, the party announced that it had prevented an Israeli patrol from crossing the "Fatima Gate" at the concrete border wall erected near Kfar Kila.
Drones are flying at low altitude over Sarain and Nabi Sheet (Baalbeck), according to our correspondent in the Bekaa, Sarah Abdallah.
The Israeli army released new evacuation notices shortly before 1:00 p.m. for the residents of 25 localities in southern Lebanon, asking them to move north of the Awali River, located north of Sidon.
Here is the list of localities mentioned in the Israeli army's statement, including the city of Nabatieh and many surrounding villages:
Nabatieh, Nabatieh al-Fawqa, Kharayeb, Erzi, Zarariyeh, Adloun, Ansariyeh, Mazraa Deir Takla, Mazraa Wasta, Mazraa Jamjam, Qsaybeh, Jibchit, Mazraa Sinai, Doueir al-Sharqiyeh, Kfar Remmane, Manzala, Habbouch, Homsiyeh, Baissariyeh, Saksakiyeh, Loubbiyeh, Kfar Tibnit, Arnoun, Zaoutar el-Sharqiyeh, and Zaoutar el-Gharbiyyeh.
Latest from southern Lebanon:
- Israeli fighter jets struck Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil), according to our correspondent in South Lebanon, Mountasser Abdallah.
- White phosphorus attacks and artillery strikes were reported in Ramiyah and Beit Lif (Bint Jbeil), while a missile landed near the town of Ain Ebel (Bint Jbeil).
Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for a new series of attacks on Israeli positions near the border:
9:15 a.m., Hezbollah party struck an army position in the town of Kfar Giladi with Falaq missiles. Also it struck the Israeli army in Ramim with Falaq missiles. At the same time it attacked an Israeli army position in the Misgav Am woods.
11:00 a.m., Hezbollah struck an Israeli army position at the Raheb site with two Burkan missiles; as well as an Israeli army position near the town of Adamit. Around the same time the party attacked the Raheb site.
11:40 a.m., Hezbollah launched a strike on the town of Tiberias, located on the shores of the lake of the same name, about 30 kilometers from the Blue Line.
12:20 p.m., Hezbollah launched missiles at the Israeli army in the town of Sasa.
The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip has announced a new death toll of 41,788 in the Palestinian enclave since the beginning of the war with Israel nearly a year ago.
At least 99 people were killed in the last 24 hours, the statement said, adding that 96,794 people had been injured.
The death toll from the overnight strike on Bashoura, in central Beirut, has risen to nine dead and 14 injured. Four people are still hospitalized, according to Lebanon's Ministry of Health.
The ministry also noted that DNA tests were conducted to identify some body parts.
Illustration: Jaimee Lee Haddad/L'Orient Today
As we have been reporting, an Israeli air strike targeted a building in Bashoura in central Beirut last night, killing at least six people. Here is a map to show you where it was, in relation to the rest of the city.
A military adviser for Iran's Revolutionary Guards has died from injuries sustained during an Israeli airstrike on Damascus, Syria, according to the Iranian news agency SNN.
He is added to the list of four people who were killed in a building in the residential district of Mazzeh, including the son-in-law of Hezbollah's former leader Hassan Nasrallah, Hassan Jaafar al-Qassir, and Jaafar al-Qassir's brother, who was responsible for the transfer of weapons from Iran to Lebanon.
The Israeli army and the Shin Bet intelligence services have claimed today that they killed Rawhi Mushtaha, the "head of the government" in Gaza, three months ago.
He was killed along with Sameh al-Siraj, in charge of security affairs for the Political Bureau and head of the Hamas Executive Committee, and Sami Oudeh, commander of General Security.
Hezbollah announced three attacks carried out between 9:15 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.
- It launched a "salvo of missiles at a gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers in the settelement of Yiron," opposite Lebanese Yaroun and a few kilometers from the border.
- Its fighters foiled "an attempt by Israeli enemy forces to advance at the Fatima Gate," on the border in Kfar Kila (Marjayoun), with artillery shells.
- It claimed to have launched a salvo of missiles at "a gathering of Israeli enemy forces between Shtula and al-Rahib" Israeli sites, facing Lebanese Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil).
*Hezbollah has not reported any direct combat with the Israeli army today, unlike yesterday.
Two Belgian journalists from the Flemish broadcaster VTM Nieuws were attacked and injured on Wednesday night while reporting on the aftermath of an Israeli strike in the Bashoura neighborhood of central Beirut, according to Belgian broadcaster RTBF.
The strike targeted a Hezbollah-affiliated rescue center and killed seven people, marking the second such attack on central Beirut by Israeli aircraft. RTBF reported that the two journalists were "wounded and treated" in Beirut.
Lebanese media outlets and videos circulating on social media show that the pair were assaulted by a group of men in the neighborhood near the strike. One of the journalists is said to have suffered a gunshot wound to the leg.
The Israeli army said it struck the Bint Jbeil municipality building in southern Lebanon during a night attack, claiming to have killed "at least 15 Hezbollah members." In a statement, the Israeli army said, "During the night, Air Force fighter jets, in coordination with the 36th Division, targeted the Bint Jbeil municipality building where several Hezbollah operatives were active." The army also claimed that "numerous weapons used by the organization were stored in the building," and that "around 15 operatives inside the building were killed as part of the attack."
Nonetheless, Hezbollah has not announced the death of any of its fighters so far.
The United Nations Special Coordinator in Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, said "anxiety and fear are omnipresent" in Beirut following another night of Israeli attacks in the heart of the Lebanese capital.
"Another sleepless night in Beirut. Counting the blasts shaking the city. No warning sirens. Not knowing what’s next. Only that uncertainty lies ahead." Hennis-Plasschaert wrote on social media. The overnight Israeli strike on the Islamic Health Committee, Hezbollah affliated relief organization, in the Bashoura district was just a few hundred meters from buildings housing U.N. staff and less that 2 kilometers away from Downtown Beirut.
According to Haaretz, 25 rockets were fired from southern Lebanon, with one drone reportedly "shot down" over the Israeli town of Nahariya and another falling in an open area. Alarm sirens had sounded in several northern Israeli areas. No casualties have been reported so far, reported Haaretz.
The U.S. government announced yesterday that Kamel Ahmad Jawad, an American resident, had been killed in Lebanon. Friends and neighbors said he died in an Israeli airstrike, according to Reuters. Jawad, who lived in Dearborn, Michigan, had returned to Lebanon to care for his elderly mother, the Detroit News reported.
A White House spokesperson said, "We are deeply saddened by the death of Kamel Ahmad Jawad, and our hearts go out to his family and friends. His death is a tragedy, as are the deaths of many civilians in Lebanon." Earlier, a State Department spokesperson, asked about reports of an American's death in Lebanon, confirmed, "We know that a legal permanent resident, not a U.S. citizen, was killed in Lebanon, but of course we extend our sincere condolences to his family."
The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, has called for urgent efforts to achieve a cease-fire and end what he described as Israel's "aggression" against Lebanon and Gaza.
"It has become crystal clear that what is happening is genocide, in addition to turning the Gaza Strip into an area unfit for human habitation, in preparation for displacement," he said. The Emir also emphasized, "We have already warned of Israel's impunity. No peace will be possible in the region without the establishment of a Palestinian state."
Flights have resumed in Iran this morning, according to state media, citing the country's civil aviation organization. This follows the closure of Iranian airspace on Tuesday, after Tehran launched a missile attack on Israel.
The Islamic Health Committee (IHC), Hezbollah-affiliated relief organization, confirmed this morning that seven of its rescue workers were killed in the overnight strike on its center in Bashoura, central Beirut.
An earlier official report from the Health Ministry had placed the death toll at six.
The victims were identified as Raja Zreik, Mahdi Halbawi, Wissam Salhab, Ahmad Hayek, Moustafa Moussawi, Sajed Sherri, and Hassan Khansa. While the first five were in charge of the center, the last two were volunteers, according to a IHC press release.
Here are the latest updates from South Lebanon:
Israeli artillery fire targeted Taybeh and the outskirts of Odaisseh, in the Marjayoun district, and Aitaroun (Bint Jbeil), as well as Khiam, Kfar Kila and Bourj al-Moulouk, all in the Marjayoun district.
According to rescue workers, the Israeli strike on Arnoun (Nabatieh), reported earlier today, killed at least three people and wounded four.
According to a Civil Defense report published this morning, firefighters have extinguished fires in 16 homes, 8 warehouses, 7 shops, 2 power lines, a plot of land, two buildings, and 13 cars since yesterday. They also transported eight bodies and five wounded, reopened two roads, and made 69 trips to deliver water to shelters for displaced persons.
Lebanon's caretaker Heatlh Minister, Firas Abiad, will hold a press conference today at 3 p.m. to discuss the Israeli offensive and attacks on paramedical personnel.
The announcement follows a recent strike in central Beirut targeting a center run by the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Rescue Committee, which killed seven paramedics. Abiad will also address medical services for displaced persons and efforts by the health sector to respond to the war.
The brother of the owner of the burning plastics factory in Beirut's southern suburbs, contacted by L'Orient Today, confirmed that the fire was caused by an Israeli strike near the factory, located between Haret Hreik and Hadath in the al-Amerikan neighborhood.
"There’s a generator and fuel oil tanks on site to run the factory," he explained, expressing concern that the entire building could catch fire. "The fire started in the basement, where our factory is, and it’s spreading to the upper floors. It’s really hell here," he added.
According to him, the six-storey building is residential, but it is not known whether it has been evacuated. He also said that Civil Defense had not yet intervened. Contacted by L'Orient Today, a Civil Defense official confirmed that firefighters were on their way.
The fire in Beirut's southern suburbs, as seen from Hazmieh. (CreditL Emilie Sueur/L'Orient Today)
A column of black smoke continues to rise above Beirut's southern suburbs today following around 15 violent Israeli strikes overnight.
According to our sources, the smoke is from a fire at the plastics production company "Al Walid Plast," located between Haret Hreik and Hadath, in the al-Amerikan neighborhood, which was hit during the night. The company's owner, Walid Hamdan, has urged the fire department to intervene swiftly to extinguish the blaze, which is raging in the building's two basements. Hamdan also warned of the presence of power generators and fuel tanks in the area.
Since just before 7 a.m. this morning, Israeli aircraft have targeted a house in Hermel, near one of the village's hospitals, after striking the area around Baalbeck overnight, according to our correspondent in the Baalbek-Hermel district.
In southern Lebanon, fighter jets hit Khiam (Marjayoun district) around 7 a.m., followed by strikes in the area between Bazourieh and Ain Baal (Sour), al-Hosh west of Sour, east of Ansar and Arnoun (Nabatieh), according to our correspondent in the region.
The Israeli army has announced the detection of two drones over the country’s maritime space, off the Tel Aviv region.
One drone was intercepted, and "the fall of an object was detected in an open area," the army said on X. No injuries were reported.
The Houthi rebels claimed the attack, “in support of the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance.” The statement added, "The operation achieved its goals successfully as the drones reached their targets without the enemy being able to confront or shoot them down." Press here for the details.👈
The night’s bombardments followed a day of intense clashes between Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli army along the Lebanese-Israeli border yesterday.
According to the Israeli army, the fighting resulted in the deaths of eight Israeli soldiers in their ground offensive on South Lebanon.
Hezbollah announced a record number of operations, including attacks on Israeli soldiers attempting to advance through southern Lebanon and the cross-border launch of more than 240 rockets, according to the Israeli army. The party also claimed to have destroyed five Merkava tanks, repelled helicopters from Lebanese airspace and fired hundreds of rockets targeting northern Israel and Haifa. Hezbollah claims to have wounded and killed “more than 80 officers and soldiers,” according to party-affiliated television channel al-Mayadeen.
Beirut's southern suburbs were again hit by a dozen violent Israeli strikes last night.
Just before the bombardment began, Israeli army Arab-speaking spokesman Avichay Adraee issued several evacuation notices for the districts of Haret Hreik, Bourj al-Barajneh, and western Hadath. Among the new strikes, five targeted the area around Chiyah and al-Amerikan neighborhood in the southern suburbs, according to local media. No prior evacuation notice had been issued by the Israeli army for this area. Meanwhile, the Israeli army continued its attacks in the Bekaa, targeting the areas around the towns of Baalbeck and Zahle.
On Wednesday night, the Israeli army targeted central Beirut for the second time, hitting a Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Committee (IHC) medical center in the Bashoura neighborhood.
According to the Ministry of Health, the attack killed six and wounded seven. The Israeli army first struck central Beirut three days earlier, killing three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in a targeted strike in Cola.
To catch up on what you've missed yesterday, be sure to check out our special edition Morning Brief.👈
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