Huge Israeli air strikes hit residential building in central Beirut, killing at least 11 people
23 November 2024, 11:51
A huge Israeli strike has decimated a residential building in the centre of the Lebanese capital Beirut.
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At least 11 people have been killed and more than 60 injured, Lebanon's health ministry has stated.
The eight-storey building was totally destroyed without warning by five missiles in the capital's densely-populated Basta district, according to Lebanon's National News Agency (NMA).
The attack took place at 04:00 local time, 02:00 GMT on Saturday, with explosions felt in the city.
The Israeli military has made no immediate comment about the Basta strike.
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It's thought that a new Hezbollah figure could have been the target, due to the scale of Saturday's air strike and the fact it happened without warning.
But there has been no confirmation from either the armed group or the Israeli military.
Emergency teams went to the site of Basta, where plumes of smoke rose from an enormous crater.
The death toll should rise as work to remove rubble at the site carries on.
The health ministry said DNA tests will be used to identify victims.
According to local resident Nemir Zarariya, he and his family were asleep when the pre-dawn attack started.
He told the BBC: "We were deep asleep and then the strike happened and then a second strike. We didn't understand what happened.
“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.”
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 attack took place in the early hours of Saturday 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".
One hour later fighter jets targeted several sites which included multiple Hezbollah command centres, weapons storage facilities and "additional terrorist infrastructure," the IDF said in a statement.
In recent months, Israeli strikes killed several top Hezbollah members in Beirut such as the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah.
In September, the IDF started a major offensive against Hezbollah to enact air strikes and send troops into southern Lebanon.
The hostilities increased as the Iran-backed Hezbollah shot multiple salvoes of rockets into Israel in solidarity with Hamas, the Palestinian group that enacted the deadly 7 October 2023 attack on southern Israel.
Israel's main goal in its war against Hezbollah is to allow the return of approximately 60,000 residents who have been displaced from communities in northern Israel due to the group's attacks.
In Lebanon the conflict murdered 3,500 people and forced more than one million from their homes, authorities stated.
Earlier this week, a US mediator went to Israel and Lebanon to try and secure a ceasefire.
Amos Hochstein indicated some progress had been made - but has not publicly commented on any details.
