Beirut: The Israeli military has levelled a building in a suburb of Beirut that it said housed Hezbollah “facilities,” sending smoke and debris into the air a few hundred meters from where a spokesperson for the militant group had just briefed journalists about a weekend drone attack that damaged the Israeli prime minister’s house.
The airstrike came 40 minutes after Israel issued an evacuation warning for two buildings in the area that it said were used by Hezbollah. The Hezbollah press conference nearby was cut short, and an Associated Press photographer captured an image of a missile heading towards the building moments before it was destroyed. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Hezbollah’s chief spokesman, Mohammed Afif, said the group was behind the Saturday drone attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home in the coastal town of Caesarea. He hinted that it might attempt future strikes on Netanyahu’s home. Israel has said neither the prime minister nor his wife were home at the time of the attack.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Tuesday with Netanyahu as part of his 11th visit to the region since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. After Israel’s killing last week of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Blinken is trying to revive efforts to secure a cease-fire in Gaza. So far, both Israel and Hamas appear to be digging in.
Blinken stressed the need for Israel to do more to help increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Palestinians, and said Israel should “capitalise” on Sinwar’s death as an opportunity to end the war in Gaza and secure the release of hostages there. Netanyahu’s office called his meeting with Blinken, which lasted more than two hours, “friendly and productive.”
The aftermath of the missile strike in Ghobeiri, Beirut.Credit: AP
Blinken landed hours after Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets into central Israel, setting off air raid sirens in populated areas and at its international airport, but causing no apparent damage or injuries.
Hospitals in Lebanon fear being targeted by Israel
An Israeli airstrike late Monday in Beirut night destroyed several buildings across the street from the country’s largest public hospital, killing 18 people and wounding at least 60 others. The Israeli military said it struck a Hezbollah target, without elaborating, and said that it hadn’t targeted the hospital itself.
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