Israel strikes on Beirut cause panic on the streets as Lebanese army spreads across the country

Update Israel strikes on Beirut cause panic on the streets as Lebanese army spreads across the country
Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 28 September 2024
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Israel strikes on Beirut cause panic on the streets as Lebanese army spreads across the country

Israel strikes on Beirut cause panic on the streets as Lebanese army spreads across the country

BEIRUT/DUBAI/LONDON: A series of Israeli airstrikes rocked Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday evening, erasing a residential block in the Haret Hreik neighborhood and reverberating across the Lebanese capital, rattling windows and sending a thick plume of dark smoke into the sky.

The Israeli army’s spokesperson Daniel Hagari claimed the “precise strikes” hit the central headquarters of the Iran-backed group Hezbollah, believed to be located beneath residential buildings, the AP news agency reported.

The blasts caused nationwide panic and plunged the surrounding area into chaos. Paramedics from Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Authority rushed to the scene alongside relatives of the buildings’ residents.

Others in the southern suburbs rushed into their cars and fled towards Beirut and Mount Lebanon.

Lebanon’s Health Minister Firas Abiad confirmed that “some of the targeted buildings were inhabited.”

At least two people have been killed, and hospitals in the area received more than 50 wounded from nearby buildings, including three in critical condition. Rescue teams urgently appealed for blood donations.

The Lebanese state-run National News Agency said six tall buildings in Haret Hreik have been reduced to rubble in the biggest blast to hit the capital in the past year.

Targeting Hezbollah’s secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah, who was suspected to be in a bunker underneath the buildings, the Israeli military used F-35 aircraft and dropped 2,000 tons of explosives on the area, according to Israeli media.

Mohanad Hage Ali, the deputy director for research at the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, told Arab News that “Israel has moved from the precision killings phase into dynamite or blast fishing; the end justifies the means.”

“They can kill hundreds to reach a target,” he continued. “This is why it is more likely a high-value target was there (in the targeted block) – this is why they (the Israeli military) took the decision.”

Israeli broadcaster Kan 11 initially reported an on-screen headline saying Nasrallah was “harmed,” but quickly followed with Israeli assessments indicating he is dead.

However, the Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that a security source confirmed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and the group’s executive council head, Hashim Safi Al-Din, were unharmed.

Iran’s embassy in Beirut described the Israeli strike as a “serious escalation that changes the rules of the game,” threatening that there will be repercussions.

“The Israeli regime once again commits a bloody massacre, targeting heavily populated residential neighborhoods while spewing false justifications to try and cover up its brutal crimes,” the embassy wrote on the social platform X.

“There is no doubt that this reprehensible crime and reckless behavior represent a serious escalation that changes the rules of the game, and that its perpetrator will be punished appropriately.”  

Analysts believe the strike on Haret Hreik reflects Israel’s dismissal of traditional wartime norms, marking the start of a new phase in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

“Such a strike signals a disregard for the limitations typically observed in warfare, including proportionality and ethical considerations as it is a civil populated area as Tel Aviv a city with military basis,” Rafe Jabari, a researcher on the political sociology of Arab states, told Arab News.

 “The scale of the destruction implies that the Israeli government is not constrained by these principles of International Law,” he added.

Jabari also believes “the strategy being employed suggests that Israel believes that war is the solution to end further conflict.”

 

He explained that “airstrikes are the strategic weapons used by Israel before the invasion of the Lebanese territories as happened in the Gaza Strip.

“The Israeli army is using destruction and terrors to eliminate any opposition to its occupation and colonization policy.”

“However, this approach is wrong,” Jabari continued. “Rather than achieving lasting peace, the continuation of such military actions is likely to provoke further instability and insecurity across the region.”

“Instead of bringing about an end to hostilities, this escalation will fuel the conditions for more wars and destruction in the future including this one.”

Likewise, Beirut-based political analyst Nader Ezzedine said: “By targeting Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, regardless of the outcome, Israel has chosen to break all established conflict rules and red lines that had been observed in its previous wars with Hezbollah.”

He told Arab News that “whether the outcome of this strike results in Nasrallah’s death or his survival, it will have significant ramifications for the conflict.”

“Hezbollah initially tried to adhere to certain rules in the hopes that an agreement can be reached to end the war in Gaza and Lebanon,” he added. “However, after this strike, I no longer believe this war will have any rules or limits.”

However, Ezzeddine believes that while the strike may have dealt a significant blow to Hezbollah and undermined its fighters’ morale, “it will not end the war but will likely intensify the fighting even further.”

“This strike will not end the conflict if Israel aimed to do so by killing Nasrallah,” he said. “Instead, it will certainly cause a huge escalation.”

He also expects this strike to be followed by an Israeli ground invasion, while Hezbollah may escalate its attacks against Israel.

Middle East expert Jabari noted that “we are witnessing an open war worse than the one in 2006. The Israeli army and government are choosing weapons as a means of negotiation instead of political and diplomatic endeavors.”

On Wednesday, Sep. 25, Israel’s military chief Herzi Halevi told troops that its airstrikes in Lebanon aimed to destroy Hezbollah’s infrastructure to pave the way for a possible ground incursion, CNN reported.

These comments came after the Israeli army intercepted a missile that Hezbollah said it had shot at the headquarters of Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, near the Israeli city of Tel Aviv.

A day earlier, an Israeli airstrike on Beirut killed senior Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Qubaisi, who reportedly led the group’s missile and rocket force.

Reports of Friday’s strikes came less than an hour after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address at the UN General Assembly, in which he vowed to continue his military operation in Lebanon despite a US ceasefire proposal demanding a 21-day pause in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Israel’s onslaught on Lebanon, which it says aims to eliminate Hezbollah, has killed within a few days 720 Lebanese people, many of them women and children, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

Since October 8, after Israel launched its onslaught on Palestine’s Gaza Strip, Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging cross-border fire. But in the last week, Israel dramatically intensified its airstrikes in Lebanon, claiming the goal is to end Hezbollah’s 11 months of attacks on its territory.


Lebanon rocket fire kills two in Israel: first responders

Lebanon rocket fire kills two in Israel: first responders
Updated 50 sec ago
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Lebanon rocket fire kills two in Israel: first responders

Lebanon rocket fire kills two in Israel: first responders
Emergency medic Dor Vakinin said “we had to determine the death of both of them“

JERUSALEM: Rocket fire from Lebanon killed two men in their 40s in the northern Israeli town of Nahariya on Tuesday, first responders said.
Emergency medic Dor Vakinin said a rocket hit a warehouse and after “medical examinations... we had to determine the death of both of them.” A barrage of 10 rockets had been fired from Lebanon into northern Israel, the Israeli military said in a statement.

UN force says Israeli work on so-called Alpha Line with Syria saw ‘severe violations’ of ceasefire

UN force says Israeli work on so-called Alpha Line with Syria saw ‘severe violations’ of ceasefire
Updated 33 min 58 sec ago
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UN force says Israeli work on so-called Alpha Line with Syria saw ‘severe violations’ of ceasefire

UN force says Israeli work on so-called Alpha Line with Syria saw ‘severe violations’ of ceasefire
  • The Israel military also has begun demolishing villages in Lebanon, where other UN peacekeepers have come under fire
  • “Such severe violations of the (demilitarized zone) have the potential to increase tensions in the area and is being closely monitored by UNDOF,” it added
The Israel military also has begun demolishing villages in Lebanon, where other UN peacekeepers have come under fire
“Such severe violations of the (demilitarized zone) have the potential to increase tensions in the area and is being closely monitored by UNDOF,” it added

DUBAI: United Nations peacekeepers warned Tuesday that the Israeli military has committed “severe violations” of a ceasefire deal with Syria as its military continues a major construction project along the so-called Alpha Line that separates the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria.
The comments from the UN Disengagement Observer Force, which has patrolled the area since 1974, come after an Associated Press report Monday that published satellite imagery showing the extent of the works along the frontier.
The work, which UNDOF said began in July, follows the completion by the Israeli military of new roadways and what appears to be a buffer zone along the Gaza Strip’s frontier with Israel. The Israel military also has begun demolishing villages in Lebanon, where other UN peacekeepers have come under fire.
While such violence hasn’t broken out along the Alpha Line, UNDOF warned Tuesday the work risked further inflaming tensions in the region.
“Such severe violations of the (demilitarized zone) have the potential to increase tensions in the area and is being closely monitored by UNDOF,” it added.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Syrian officials have declined to comment on the construction, though UNDOF described Syrian officials as having “strongly protested” the work.
As Israel conducted the construction work, which UNDOF described as “extensive engineering groundwork activities,” it has protected earth-moving equipment with armored vehicles and main battle tanks, the peacekeepers said. Troops and earth-moving equipment have crossed the Alpha Line into the demilitarized zone in Syria, known to UNDOF as the “area of separation.”
“Violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement have occurred where engineering works have encroached into the AOS,” the peacekeepers said in a statement, using an acronym for the area. “There have been several violations by (Israel) in the form of their presence in the AoS because of these activities.”
UNDOF has repeatedly protested the work, which it described as violating the ceasefire deal over the months of construction so far.
“Based on the engagement, (Israel) has indicated that the current earthworks are being carried out for defensive purpose to prevent unauthorized crossing and violations by civilians,” the peacekeepers added.
Israel sent a 71-page letter in June to the UN outlining what it described as “Syrian violations of the Alpha Line and armed presence in the area of separation (that) occur daily.” The letter cited numerous Israeli-alleged violations by Syrian civilians crossing the line.
Syria has constantly accused Israel of launching attacks against it from territory it occupies in the Golan Heights. Israel has frequently struck Syria over the years, particularly after the start of the Mideast wars following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Israel.
Israel seized control of the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war. The UN Secretary Council voted to create UNDOF to patrol a roughly 400-square-kilometer (155-square-mile) demilitarized zone and maintain the peace there after the 1973 Mideast war. A second demarcation, known as the Bravo Line, marks the limit of where the Syrian military can operate.
UNDOF has around 1,100 troops, mostly from Fiji, India, Kazakhstan, Nepal and Uruguay, who patrol the area.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981 — a move criticized by a UN resolution declaring Israel’s action as “null and void and without international legal effect.” The territory, some 1,200 square kilometers (460 square miles) in size, is a strategic high ground that overlooks both Israel and Syria.
Around 50,000 Jewish settlers and Arabs who are mostly members of the Druze sect of Shiite Islam live there.
In 2019, President Donald Trump unilaterally announced that the United States would “fully recognize” Israel’s control of the territory, a decision that has been unchanged by the Biden administration. However, it’s the only other country to do so, as the rest of the world views it as occupied Syrian territory.

Lebanon security official says Israel strikes house east of Beirut

Lebanon security official says Israel strikes house east of Beirut
Updated 12 November 2024
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Lebanon security official says Israel strikes house east of Beirut

Lebanon security official says Israel strikes house east of Beirut
  • Israeli warplanes hit a house between Baalshamieh and Dhour Al-Abadiyah

BEIRUT: A Lebanese security official said an Israeli strike hit a villa east of Beirut on Tuesday, with state media confirming the rare attack outside Hezbollah’s traditional strongholds.

The security official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said the “Israeli strike caused an unspecified number of casualties.” The National News Agency later said Israeli warplanes hit a house between Baalshamieh and Dhour Al-Abadiyah

At least five people were killed and two were injured in the strike, health ministry said.


Iranian capital builds ‘defensive tunnel’ after Israeli strikes

Iranian capital builds ‘defensive tunnel’ after Israeli strikes
Updated 12 November 2024
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Iranian capital builds ‘defensive tunnel’ after Israeli strikes

Iranian capital builds ‘defensive tunnel’ after Israeli strikes

DUBAI: Iran is building a “defensive tunnel” in the capital Tehran, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday, following strikes by Israel on targets in the country.
The tunnel, located near the city center, will link a station on the Tehran metro to the Imam Khomeini hospital, thus allowing direct underground access to the medical facility.
“For the first time in the country, a tunnel with defensive applications is being built in Tehran,” the head of transport for Tehran City Council told Tasnim.
Last month, Israel carried out its first officially-recognized strikes in Iran, hitting missile factories and other sites near Tehran and in the country’s west, as a response to Iran’s Oct.1 attack on Israeli territory.


Wave of Israeli strikes hit south Beirut after evacuation warning

Wave of Israeli strikes hit south Beirut after evacuation warning
Updated 25 min 42 sec ago
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Wave of Israeli strikes hit south Beirut after evacuation warning

Wave of Israeli strikes hit south Beirut after evacuation warning
  • Since September 23, Israel has intensified its air campaign, mainly targeting Hezbollah strongholds

BEIRUT: Israel launched at least 10 air strikes on south Beirut Tuesday morning, Lebanese state media said, shortly after Israel’s army urged residents of several neighborhoods to evacuate the Hezbollah bastion.
“Israeli warplanes launched a very violent tenth strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs,” the official National News Agency reported.
AFPTV footage showed grey smoke covering the area, with big plumes rising after each strike.
Earlier Tuesday, the Israeli army told residents of four south Beirut neighborhoods to leave immediately, warning it would strike Hezbollah targets there.
“You are located near facilities and interests affiliated with Hezbollah, against which the Israel Defense Forces will act in the near future,” military spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X.
The post included a map showing the buildings it would target in the Lebanese capital’s south.
Witnesses told AFP they heard gunfire in the area ahead of the strikes — warning shots by residents for people to leave following the evacuation call.
NNA also reported Israeli strikes across Lebanon’s south that destroyed a building in the main southern city of Nabatiyeh and also targeted the eastern city of Hermel.
Last month, Israeli strikes razed Nabatiyeh’s historic marketplace, with another wave of attacks also hitting its municipality building and killing several including the mayor.
Since September 23, Israel has intensified its air campaign, mainly targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon’s east and south and in southern Beirut. A week later, it sent in ground troops.
It came after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges of fire, launched by Hezbollah in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas following their October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the Gaza war.
More than 3,240 people have been killed in Lebanon since the clashes began last year, according to the health ministry, the majority of them since late September.