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Central Beirut residential building hit by massive Israeli strikes Massive Israeli airstrike on central Beirut kills at least 11
(about 2 hours later)
Beirut strikes 'so powerful it was felt across the city'Beirut strikes 'so powerful it was felt across the city'
A massive Israeli strike has flattened a residential building in centre of the Lebanese capital Beirut. At least 11 people have been killed and more than 60 injured, according to Lebanon's health ministry. A massive Israeli air strike on central Beirut has killed at least 11 people, Lebanese officials say, destroying a eight-storey building in the latest attack on the Lebanese capital.
The eight-storey building was completely destroyed without warning by five missiles in the capital's densely-populated Basta district, according to Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA). Explosions shook the city following the strike on the densely populated Basta district, which happened without warning at about 04:00 (02:00 GMT) on Saturday.
Explosions shook the city following the Israeli attack, which happened at about 04:00 local time (02:00 GMT) on Saturday. Lebanon's National News Agency said Saturday’s attack included a bunker buster bomb, a type of weapon previously used by Israel to kill senior Hezbollah figures, including then-leader Hassan Nasrallah.
The Israeli military made no immediate comment about the Basta strike. This could indicate that a high-level official was the possible target, but there has been no immediate comment from either the Israeli military or Hezbollah.
The scale of Saturday's air strike and the fact it happened without warning indicate that a senior Hezbollah figure could have been the target, although there has been no confirmation from either the armed group or the Israeli military. Israel-Lebanon in maps: Tracking the conflict with Hezbollah and Iran
Emergency teams searched the site in Basta, where plumes of smoke rose from a huge crater. What is Hezbollah and why is Israel attacking Lebanon?
The death toll is likely to rise as work to remove rubble at the site continues. The health ministry said DNA tests will be used to identify victims. All morning, emergency workers used heavy machinery to remove the rubble and retrieve bodies.
Local resident Nemir Zarariya said he and his family were asleep when the pre-dawn attack began. The Lebanese health ministry said more than 60 people had been wounded, and that the number of victims was expected to rise as DNA tests would be carried out on body parts that had been recovered.
"We were deep asleep and then the strike happened and then a second strike. We didn't understand what happened,” he said. “It was a very horrible explosion. All the windows and glasses were over me, my wife and my children. My home now is a battlefield,” said 55-year-old Ali Nassar, who lived in a nearby building.
“There was dust and wrecked houses, people running and screaming. My wife is in hospital, my daughter is in hospital, my aunt is in the hospital.” “One person is hiding here… Should you destroy three buildings where people are sleeping inside? Is it necessary to kill all the people for one person? Or we’re not humans? That’s what I’m asking.”
Also on Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out further air strikes on the Dahieh, the area in southern Beirut where Hezbollah is based, saying they were buildings linked to the group.
Israeli attacks have also hit the south, where an Israeli ground invasion is advancing, and the eastern Bekaa Valley, two areas where Hezbollah has strong presence.
Lebanese officials say a 'bunker buster' bomb was used in the strike
In the past two weeks, Israel has intensified its campaign against Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militia and political movement, amid international efforts for a ceasefire, in what appears to be a strategy to pressure the group to accept a deal.
The escalation comes as renewed negotiations to end more than one year of conflict showed initial signs of progress. This week, Amos Hochstein, who has led the Biden administration’s diplomatic efforts, held talks in Lebanon and Israel to try to advance a US drafted deal.
Since the conflict intensified in late September, Lebanese authorities have said any deal should be limited to the terms of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel.
The resolution includes the withdrawal of Hezbollah’s fighters and weapons in areas between the Blue Line - the unofficial frontier between Lebanon and Israel - and the Litani river, about 30km (20 miles) from the boundary with Israel.
Israel says that was never fully respected, while Lebanon says Israeli violations included military flights over Lebanese territory.
The strike happened in the early hours of Saturday with no warningThe strike happened in the early hours of Saturday with no warning
The strike is Israel's fourth attack this week on central Beirut. On Monday, Iran-backed Hezbollah said its spokesman Mohammed Afif had been killed in an air strike. The proposal being discussed, according to a Western diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity, includes a 60-day ceasefire which would see the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and the removal of Hezbollah’s presence from the area. The Lebanese military would then boost its presence there, with thousands of extra troops.
The attack in the early hours of Saturday was followed by others in the city. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued an evacuation order to residents in southern Beirut who, it claimed, were located "near Hezbollah facilities and interests". But disagreements over some elements remained, the diplomat added, including about the timeline for an Israeli pull-out and the formation of an international mechanism to monitor the agreement.
An hour later, fighter jets targeted a number of sites which included several Hezbollah command centres, weapons storage facilities, and "additional terrorist infrastructure", the IDF said in a statement. Hezbollah, and its main supporter Iran, have both indicated being interested in a deal, according to a senior Lebanese source. After the initial shock, the group has reorganised itself, and it continues to carry out daily attacks on Israel, although not with the same intensity, and confront invading Israeli soldiers in Lebanon’s south.
In recent months, Israeli strikes have killed several top Hezbollah members in Beirut, including the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah. On Thursday, Hezbollah’s Secretary General Naim Qassem said the group had received the US proposal, clarified its reservations, and that it was allowing the talks to go ahead to see if they produced any results. He said that the conditions for a deal were a complete cessation of hostilities and the preservation of Lebanon’s sovereignty.
The IDF began a major offensive against Hezbollah in September, carrying out air strikes and also sending troops into southern Lebanon. Hezbollah was ready for a long fight, he added.
The hostilities escalated after the Iran-backed Hezbollah fired repeated salvoes of rockets into Israel in solidarity with Hamas, the Palestinian group that carried out the deadly 7 October 2023 attack on southern Israel. Israel’s stated goal in its war against Hezbollah is to allow the return of about 60,000 residents who have been displaced from communities in northern Israel because of the group’s attacks.
Israel’s stated goal in its war against Hezbollah is to allow the return of about 60,000 residents who have been displaced from communities in northern Israel because of the group’s attacks.
In Lebanon, the conflict has killed more than 3,500 people and forced more than one million from their homes, Lebanese authorities say.In Lebanon, the conflict has killed more than 3,500 people and forced more than one million from their homes, Lebanese authorities say.
Earlier this week, a US mediator visited both Israel and Lebanon in an attempt to secure a ceasefire. Additional reporting by Dearbail Jordan and Jaroslav Lukiv in London.
Amos Hochstein indicated some progress had been made - but has not publicly commented on any details.