BAALBEK: Strikes rocked the eastern Lebanese city of Baalbek and its outskirts on Wednesday, a correspondent reported, hours after Israel issued an evacuation call for the area. Baalbek mayor Mustafa al Shall confirmed strikes hit the city and its surroundings, while state media said "enemy warplanes launched a series of strikes on the Asira area of the city of Baalbek" and in a nearby town. Earlier on Wednesday, Baalbek residents rushed out of their homes after the Israeli army ordered Lebanon's biggest eastern city and its outskirts evacuated for the first time in more than a month of war.
The Israeli army urged residents of Baalbek and surrounding villages to leave immediately, warning it was preparing attacks on Hezbollah targets. The main roads out of the city were jammed with vehicles as civilians fled in panic, an AFP correspondent reported. Civil defence vehicles drove around the city urging everyone to leave immediately over loudspeaker. Mosques and churches delivered the same message over their loudspeakers. — AFP
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