BEIRUT: The southern suburbs of the capital of Lebanon were subjected to night and early Sunday to Israeli air strikes, the most severe since Israel substantially increased its assault against Hezbollah last month.
Overnight, the explosions caused booms to resound throughout the city and ignited red and white sparkles that could be seen for almost half an hour from a distance of several kilometers.
Witnesses and military analysts on local TV channels stated it was Israel’s largest attack on Beirut to date.
On Sunday, smoke columns rose above the southern suburbs, and a gray cloud covered the city, leaving debris scattered over the streets.
Sunday saw the “heaviest bombing so far” in the capital of Lebanon, and smoke clouds were hovering over the city.
Out of all the nights before, last night had the greatest violence. We were surrounded by trembling buildings, and at first I believed there had been an earthquake. The sounds were unbearable, and there were so many strikes that we were unable to count,” claimed Hanan Abdullah, a resident of the southern suburbs of Beirut near Burj al-Barajneh.
Social media videos revealed new damage to the route that connects Beirut’s downtown to its southern suburbs.
Hezbollah has several weapons storage facilities and terrorist infrastructure sites in the Beirut area. Israel claimed that its air force has “conducted a series of targeted strikes on a number of these locations.”
The rockets’ target and the extent of the damage they caused were not immediately disclosed by Lebanese authorities.
The fierce bombing this past weekend coincided with the eve of the Hamas incursion on southern Israel on October 7, which set off Israel’s aggressive campaign against Gaza and other regions of the Middle East, including Lebanon.
The Lebanese health ministry reports that over 2,000 people have died in nearly a year of conflict, the majority of them in the last two weeks. According to the government, 23 individuals had died the day before on Sunday.
The head of the UN agency in charge of refugees stated on Sunday that there were “many instances” in which Israeli bombings have killed civilians in Lebanon and damaged civilian infrastructure, in violation of international law.
UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi issued a warning on Sunday, saying that while Israel’s bombardment campaign intensified and many were forced to evacuate, others were left stuck under fire, leaving civilians in Lebanon caught in the crossfire.
“There are humanitarian challenges resulting from displacement, in addition to humanitarian challenges and human rights challenges stemming from the impossibility of displacement,” he stated.
“There are still 6,000 refugees known to us, Syrian refugees in the south who were not able to move due to insecurity, and they don’t know where to go, and now it’s too late,” stated Ivo Friesen, the head of UNCHR in Lebanon.
Lebanese authorities assert that civilians have been targeted, while Israel maintains that it targets military capabilities and takes precautions to lessen the potential of injury to civilians. Hezbollah and Hamas are accused by Israel of concealing among civilians; both parties refute this accusation.
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, was killed on September 27 when Israel bombarded the Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh, which is home to thousands of common Lebanese, Palestinian, and Syrian refugees and is thought to be a bastion for Hezbollah.
The probable successor to Nasrallah, Hashem Safieddine, has not been in communication with anyone since Friday, according to a Lebanese security source. This is because Safieddine was reportedly the target of an Israeli bombing on Thursday near the city’s international airport.
According to Lebanese security officials, Israel is still bombing the attack area, making it impossible for rescue personnel to get there.
Hezbollah remains silent over Safieddine.
Losing him would be a further setback for the group and its sponsor, Iran. The past year has seen a rapid acceleration of Israeli strikes around the region, which has decimated Hezbollah’s leadership in recent weeks.
