Israel conducted an air strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, targeting a building it claimed was used by Hezbollah and testing a fragile ceasefire with the Iranian-backed militant group.
Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said the strike targeted a Hezbollah “store of precision-guided missiles”, which he argued posed a “significant threat to the State of Israel”.
A huge plume of smoke rose from the building nearly an hour after the Israeli Army ordered residents of the Hadath neighbourhood to evacuate, live footage from Reuters showed.
Lebanon condemned the attack, calling on the US and France, who brokered the ceasefire, to press Israel to halt its actions.
Lebanese president Joseph Aoun said in a statement: “Israel’s continued actions in undermining stability will exacerbate tensions and place the region at real risk, threatening its security and stability.”
This marked Israel’s first strike in nearly a month on the Dahiyeh area, where Hezbollah is based, and raised concerns over the ceasefire’s stability. Although the ceasefire has largely held, Israel has continued strikes on Hezbollah-linked targets, citing perceived threats.
“The storage of missiles in this infrastructure site constitutes a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon, and poses a threat to the State of Israel and its civilians,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
A Lebanese Civil Defence report confirmed no casualties and that the fire from the strike was extinguished, according to the BBC.
The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, expressed concern, noting the panic the strike caused among those hoping for a return to stability. “Today’s strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut generated panic and fear of renewed violence among those desperate for a return to normalcy,” she wrote on X.
“We urge all sides to halt any actions that could further undermine the cessation of hostilities understanding and the implementation of SCR 1701,” she added, referring to the United Nations Security Council resolution that ended the month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel “will not allow Hezbollah to grow stronger”.
“The Dahiyeh neighbourhood in Beirut will not serve as a safe haven for the terrorist organisation Hezbollah,” it added.
Meanwhile, Israel is also facing accusations of breaking international law by blocking aid to Gaza, as dozens of countries present arguments this week at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Since 2 March, Israel has cut off all supplies to Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, with food reserves nearly depleted. Israel insists it will not allow aid until Hamas releases all hostages, despite calls from Germany, France, Britain, and the US to allow humanitarian access.
