Twenty-two individuals have lost their lives, and 117 others have sustained injuries following Israeli air strikes on central Beirut, as reported by Lebanon’s Health Ministry.
Witnesses in Beirut’s Bachoura district, a small Shia area, reported hearing loud explosions and saw rescuers searching through the debris. Many injured victims were transported to a local hospital for treatment.
Initial reports suggest the strikes may have targeted Wafiq Safa, a high-ranking Hezbollah security official. However, the group’s media office has not yet provided a statement on the matter.
These strikes occurred after a brief period of calm in the Lebanese capital, which has been marked by intense aerial bombardments in recent weeks. Notably, this marks the third instance of Israeli air strikes in the city, apart from the more frequent attacks in the Dahieh suburb aimed at killing Hezbollah commanders and destroying munitions caches.
One eyewitness, who wished to remain anonymous, reported being in a nearby building and heard the explosion. She described the hit building as a residential structure, approximately four or five stories high, where one of her relatives required treatment for head injuries.
The air strikes in Beirut coincided with reports of two Indonesian peacekeepers being injured in southern Lebanon due to an Israeli tank shelling a UN observation tower, as stated by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil). The UN confirmed that there had been multiple strikes on their positions in the last 24 hours and condemned the deliberate targeting of peacekeepers as a serious violation of international law.
Despite the injuries, the two peacekeepers are not in serious condition. On another occasion, Israeli forces fired at a Unifil base in Naqoura, causing damage to a shelter where peacekeepers were taking cover. An Israeli drone was also reported in the vicinity.
Hezbollah claimed to have retaliated by launching rockets at Israeli positions and using guided missiles against a tank approaching the area, leading to reported casualties among Israeli forces.
Currently, there are four divisions of Israeli troops engaged in ground operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, an offensive that began on September 30.
Unifil officials expressed alarm over the escalating military activities in areas where peacekeeping forces are stationed and stressed the necessity of discussions with Israeli authorities to clarify the situation.
Since its establishment in 1978, Unifil has been responsible for monitoring hostilities and ensuring humanitarian access in southern Lebanon, an area near the so-called “Blue Line” separating Israel and Lebanon. There are approximately 10,000 Unifil troops, along with 800 civilian staff, representing 50 different countries.
Recent reports indicated that around 190 rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel by Hezbollah. On the same day, an Israeli strike in the village of Karak resulted in four fatalities and 17 injuries.
Lebanon’s government estimates that 1.2 million residents have been displaced over the past year due to ongoing conflicts. Tensions have escalated following Hezbollah’s rocket fire into northern Israel on October 8, 2023, which came shortly after a deadly assault by Hamas that claimed around 1,200 Israeli lives. Since October 7, nearly 42,000 fatalities have been reported in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
