BEIRUT — Around 9 p.m. on Sunday, the Israeli army announced that it was preparing to attack "a number of targets" associated with Qard al-Hassan Association, a charity and financial organization that acts as Hezbollah's own banking system and microfinance company. By about 11 p.m. 10 strikes had been reported in Beirut's southern suburbs.

Qard al-Hassan functions under the Islamic concept by the same name, of interest-free loans based on the principle of providing support without expecting financial gain from doing so.

It is used by many in Lebanon as an alternative Islamic banking system and, following the Israeli army's threats, Qard al-Hassan released a statement saying it had previously taken measures to protect people's deposits.

"It is important to note that the foundation has taken all necessary measures since the start of the war," it said in a statement shared on its social media. "These measures are sufficient to safeguard the deposits and the trust of the people, protecting their livelihoods and the fruits of their labor. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."

Qard al-Hassan was established in 1983 and has been registered as a non-governmental organization since 1987. It offers microloans in dollars or lira in exchange for either a mortgage on gold jewelry or sponsorship by one of the association's financial “contributors.”

The organization currently has a significant presence in areas where Hezbollah has a large support base, operating in 31 offices across Beirut’s southern suburbs — where its headquarters is located — the Bekaa and southern Lebanon.

The Israeli army has accused the association of financing Hezbollah, and warned that people "inside buildings used by Hezbollah" should "stay at least 500 meters away from them for the next few hours."

In late September, an Israeli air strike targeted a building belonging to the association in the city of Sour in southern Lebanon.

By 9:28 p.m., the first explosions were heard from the capital when an airstrike hit the southern suburbs. Within 15 minutes, the Israeli army released evacuation notices for more than eight buildings. Including four in Haret Hreik, and others in Chiyah, Tehouita al-Ghadir, Ghobeiri, and Choueifate al-Amroussiyeh. A third round of evacuation notices was then released for buildings in  Burj al-Barajneh and another again in Choueifate al-Amroussiyeh. Within half an hour, 15 evacuation orders had been released by the army. All notices were published on the X account belonging to the army's Arabic-speaking spokesperson Avichay Adraee.

Amnesty International released a report a week ago which found that Israel's evacuation orders often include discrepancies, conflicting information, and were often distributed at night and only on X (formerly twitter), making them inadequate at providing actual fair warning for civilians ahead of a bombing.