By Timour Azhari and Ari Rabinovitch
BEIRUT/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israel’s military said it killed 15 Hezbollah militants in south Lebanon on Thursday and bombed Beirut after its forces suffered their deadliest day on the Lebanese front in a year of clashes with the Iran-backed group.
Israel said it killed the Hezbollah members in a strike on the municipality building of the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil where they were operating.
The Hezbollah-linked Islamic Health Authority said in a statement that seven of its staff, including two medics, were killed in the Beirut strike.
Israel said it had conducted a precise air strike on the Lebanese capital. Reuters witnesses reported hearing a massive blast, and a security source said it targeted a building in the district of Bachoura near parliament, the closest an Israeli strike has come to the central downtown district of Beirut.
At least six people were killed and seven wounded, Lebanese health officials said. A photo circulating on Lebanese WhatsApp groups, which Reuters could not immediately verify, showed a heavily damaged building with its first floor on fire.
“Another sleepless night in Beirut. Counting the blasts shaking the city. No warning sirens. Not knowing what’s next. Only that uncertainty lies ahead. Anxiety and fear are omnipresent,” U.N. special coordinator in Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, said on X on Thursday.
A day after Iran fired more than 180 missiles into Israel, Israel said on Wednesday eight soldiers were killed in ground combat in south Lebanon as its forces thrust into its northern neighbour.
Iran said on Wednesday its missile volley – its biggest ever assault on Israel – was over, barring further provocation, but Israel and the United States promised to hit back hard.
Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani called for serious ceasefire efforts to stop Israel’s “aggression” in Lebanon and said no peace was possible in the Middle East without the creation of a Palestinian state.
What is happening in the Middle East is a “collective genocide” he said at the Asia Cooperation Dialogue summit in Doha, adding that his country has always warned of Israel’s “impunity”.
Speaking at the same gathering, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned against “silence” in the face of Israel’s “warmongering”.
“Any type of military attack, terrorist act or crossing our red lines will be met with a decisive response by our armed forces.”
Three Israeli missiles also hit the southern suburb of Dahiyeh, where Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed last week, and loud blasts were heard, Lebanese security officials said.
HOUTHIS TARGET TEL AVIV
The elimination of Nasrallah dealt a major blow to Hezbollah which he developed into Lebanon’s most influential military and political force with wide reach in the Middle East and removed Iran’s most powerful proxy.
Hezbollah and Iran’s other regional allies, Yemen’s Houthis and armed groups in Iraq, have launched attacks in the region in support of Hamas in its war with Israel in Gaza.
The Houthis, who have been firing missiles, sending armed drones and launching boats laden with explosives at commercial ships with ties to Israeli, U.S. and UK entities since last year, said they launched a successful attack on Israel’s commercial capital Tel Aviv with drones.
Israel said it intercepted a suspicious aerial target in the area of central Israel early on Thursday.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) urged residents of Lebanese villages who have evacuated their homes not to return until further notice.
“IDF raids are continuing,” spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on X on Thursday.
More than 1,900 people have been killed and over 9,000 wounded in Lebanon in almost a year of cross-border fighting, with most of the deaths occurring in the past two weeks, according to Lebanese government statistics.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said about 1.2 million Lebanese had been displaced by Israeli attacks.
More than 300 of those displaced have taken shelter in a Beirut nightclub, once known for hosting glitzy parties and where staff are now using their guest-list clipboards to register residents.
“We’re trying to keep strong,” said Gaelle Irani, who was formally in charge of guest relations, taking a brief break from finding people a corner to live in.
“Its just overwhelming. So overwhelming and sad. But just as this was a place for people to come enjoy themselves, it’s now a place to shelter people and we are doing everything we can to help and be there for them.”
The Israeli military said regular infantry and armoured units joined ground operations in Lebanon on Wednesday as Iran’s missile attack and Israel’s promise of retaliation fanned concern of a wider conflict in the oil-producing Middle East.
Israel’s addition of infantry and armoured troops from the 36th Division, including the Golani Brigade, the 188th Armoured Brigade and 6th Infantry Brigade, indicated that the operation is expanding beyond limited commando raids.
Western nations have drafted contingency plans to evacuate citizens from Lebanon after Tuesday’s dramatic escalation, but none have launched a large-scale military evacuation yet, though some are chartering aircraft as Beirut airport stays open.
(Reporting by James Mackenzie and Steven Scheer in Jerusalem; Maya Gebeily and Timour Azhari in Beirut; Parisa Hafezi in Istanbul; Phil Stewart, Jeff Mason and Idrees Ali in Washington; Michelle Nichols in New York; Adam Makary, Jaidaa Taha and Enas Alashray in Cairo; and Tala Ramadan, Jana Choukeir and Jack Kim in Seoul and Matthias Williams in Berlin, Elwely Elwelly and Clauda Tanios in Dubai and Angelo Amante and Giuseppe Fonte in Rome and Parisa Hafezi in Dubai; Writing by Cynthia Osterman and Michael Perry and Michael Georgy; Editing by Deepa Babington, William Mallard and Gareth Jones)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content.