Twenty-two people were killed and 117 injured in Israeli airstrikes on central Beirut on Thursday evening, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
Loud explosions were heard in the Bachoura neighborhood, a small Shia area in the capital, where rescuers were seen searching through rubble. Ambulances transported the injured to the American University Hospital.
Reports suggest that Wafiq Safa, a close ally of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and the apparent target of the strikes, survived. Neither the Israeli military nor Hezbollah have commented on the incident.
The airstrikes hit densely populated residential areas in Bachoura’s Nweiri and Basta neighborhoods. The attack followed two relatively calm days in Beirut after weeks of heavy strikes.
There was no prior warning, and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have not issued a statement.
This marks the third time Israel has struck the city outside of Dahieh, a southern suburb frequently targeted for its Hezbollah ties.
A woman at the hospital, who wished to remain anonymous, described how the building next to hers, a residential structure about four or five stories tall, was hit. One of her relatives was being treated for head injuries.
The attack on Beirut came hours after two Indonesian UN peacekeepers were injured when an Israeli tank fired at a watchtower in southern Lebanon, according to the UN.
The tower, part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) base in Naqoura, was directly hit.
Unifil confirmed the incident and noted that Israeli forces had repeatedly targeted their positions in the past 24 hours. The UN condemned the attacks as violations of international law.
Israeli troops were also reported to have fired on a bunker sheltering peacekeepers, damaging equipment and vehicles, while an Israeli drone was seen hovering above.
Hezbollah later claimed to have launched rockets and missiles at Israeli forces near Naqoura, resulting in casualties.
The situation in southern Lebanon has escalated since Israel began ground operations against Hezbollah on September 30.
Unifil expressed deep concern over the ongoing Israeli military actions in areas where peacekeepers are stationed. The force operates between the “Blue Line” — the boundary between Lebanon and Israel — and the Litani River, roughly 30 kilometers to the north.