Israel strikes Beirut after evacuation warning sparks panic
Israel strikes Beirut after evacuation warning sparks panic
Following an evacuation alert that triggered widespread alarm, Israel initiated air raids on Beirut, Lebanon. The military ordered hundreds of thousands of residents to leave the city’s southern suburbs, leading to chaotic scenes as people scrambled to flee. No immediate casualties were reported from the strikes.
Residents in the southern areas of Beirut experienced massive traffic congestion on primary routes as they rushed to evacuate. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) stated that the attacks were directed at Hezbollah’s militant structures, which the group has long used as a strategic base in southern Lebanon. A spokesperson for the IDF said on X: “The Defense Army executed a wave of air attacks targeting Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure in Beirut’s southern suburbs.”
Lebanon’s authorities noted that more than 120 individuals have been killed and almost 700 injured by Israeli air strikes since Monday. Over 90,000 people have been displaced. The evacuation orders followed earlier warnings to residents in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border, ahead of potential ground operations.
Escalation of Conflict
The current strikes come amid an ongoing war between Israel, the US, and Iran, with Lebanon drawn into the fray. The conflict intensified after Hezbollah launched rockets and drones over the border in retaliation for the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This marks the second major phase of hostilities since a ceasefire ended over a year of intense fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah’s leader, Naim Qassem, pledged the group would face Israel “to the point of the utmost sacrifice,” while Israeli military chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir emphasized their resolve to “eliminate the threat Hezbollah poses” and “disarm the terror organization.”
Residents’ Accounts
“We’re coming from Bir Hassan. They [the Israeli military] issued a warning so that’s why we’re leaving,” said Mohammed al-Khaouzam, a Syrian-born man fleeing with his family. He described Lebanon as his “second country,” hoping for safety as he moved north.
A woman driving north shared her concern: “Is there any place to go? What should I do?” Her children were in Beirut, and she had received a call urging her to leave the suburbs of Chiyah, Burj al-Barajneh, Haret Hreik, and Hadath.
Food kitchens and shelters in Beirut warned they could not accommodate the surge in displaced individuals. The Lebanese health ministry confirmed at least three deaths in an airstrike on a vehicle near the city’s airport, though no reports of fatalities were issued by Israeli authorities.
Earlier, a residential building on Beirut’s outskirts was hit, but locals believed it was unoccupied at the time. Several residents who had evacuated said they left on Monday due to fears of an attack, returning only to find the wreckage. “Thank god it was just our things and not us,” one woman said as she surveyed the damage with her husband.
Israel’s military confirmed overnight strikes on Hezbollah command centers in Beirut’s south, accusing the group of planning attacks on Israeli forces and civilians. The conflict has seen waves of strikes across southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley, with Hezbollah vowing to resist “to the furthest limits.”
