Israeli air strike in central Beirut kills 15
Published: 08:11 PM,Nov 23,2024 | EDITED : 12:11 AM,Nov 24,2024
A man reacts as he stands in front of his house at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood. REUTERS
BEIRUT: A powerful air strike killed 15 people in central Beirut on Saturday and 13 others were killed in attacks northeast of the Lebanese capital, the health ministry said.
Eight of the victims, four of them children, were killed in a strike on the village of Chimstar and five people died in an attack on the village of Bodai, the ministry said. Both villages are in the Baalbek district.
In Beirut, an eight-storey building was struck with four missiles, including bunker-penetrating types designed to hit underground targets, said a Lebanese security source.
At the site of the Israeli strike in central Beirut, Amin Chirri, a member of parliament representing Hezbollah, said there had been no Hezbollah leader in the building that was struck.
Saturday's blasts shook the capital at around 4 am (0200 GMT) and left a deep crater. Beirut smelled strongly of explosives for hours afterwards. Rescuers searched through rubble, in an area of the city known for its antique shops.
It was the fourth Israeli air strike in a week targeting a central area of Beirut.
The Israeli air force also struck Hezbollah targets in the southern suburbs of Beirut, the group's stronghold, the Israeli military said. In a statement on actions on Saturday, it did not mention the strike on central Beirut.
A man whose family was hurt in the strike in central Beirut tried to comfort a traumatised woman outside a hospital. Car windows were shattered.
'There was dust and wrecked houses, people running and screaming, they were running, my wife is in hospital, my daughter is in hospital, my aunt is in the hospital,' said the man, Nemir Zakariya, who held up a picture of his daughter.
'This is the little one, and my son also got hurt - this is my daughter, she is in the American University (of Beirut Medical Centre), this is what happened.'
Separately, at least five people were killed and two wounded in an Israeli strike on Roum village in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to the Lebanese state news agency.
Eight of the victims, four of them children, were killed in a strike on the village of Chimstar and five people died in an attack on the village of Bodai, the ministry said. Both villages are in the Baalbek district.
In Beirut, an eight-storey building was struck with four missiles, including bunker-penetrating types designed to hit underground targets, said a Lebanese security source.
At the site of the Israeli strike in central Beirut, Amin Chirri, a member of parliament representing Hezbollah, said there had been no Hezbollah leader in the building that was struck.
Saturday's blasts shook the capital at around 4 am (0200 GMT) and left a deep crater. Beirut smelled strongly of explosives for hours afterwards. Rescuers searched through rubble, in an area of the city known for its antique shops.
It was the fourth Israeli air strike in a week targeting a central area of Beirut.
The Israeli air force also struck Hezbollah targets in the southern suburbs of Beirut, the group's stronghold, the Israeli military said. In a statement on actions on Saturday, it did not mention the strike on central Beirut.
A man whose family was hurt in the strike in central Beirut tried to comfort a traumatised woman outside a hospital. Car windows were shattered.
'There was dust and wrecked houses, people running and screaming, they were running, my wife is in hospital, my daughter is in hospital, my aunt is in the hospital,' said the man, Nemir Zakariya, who held up a picture of his daughter.
'This is the little one, and my son also got hurt - this is my daughter, she is in the American University (of Beirut Medical Centre), this is what happened.'
Separately, at least five people were killed and two wounded in an Israeli strike on Roum village in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to the Lebanese state news agency.