In a devastating incident in Beirut, Monday night’s Israeli air strikes claimed the lives of at least four individuals, including a minor, with 24 more injured. One of these strikes occurred directly outside the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the country’s primary public health facility. This attack was part of an overall 13 air strikes executed in southern Beirut on the same evening.
The Israeli military expressed the intention of these strikes was to target areas connected with Hizbullah, an accusation also laid upon operation centres under the Sahel hospital located in the same region. The said hospital was undergoing evacuation and remains untouched by the strikes.
Israel also alleged that Hizbullah was concealing multiple hundreds of millions in cash and gold beneath a different hospital in the southern sectors of Beirut, though they vowed not to assault this institution.
Sahel Hospital in Dahiyeh, not far from the previous targets, was also evacuated. Its director, Fadi Alame, refuted the allegations in an interview with Reuters, insisting they were unfounded. Israel failed to provide supportive evidence for these allegations.
Tuesday saw sirens sound across central Israel as a missile, identified to be launching from Lebanon, dropped onto open terrain, as confirmed by the army that day. Warnings also came from Israeli military in the vicinity of Samaria and Modi’in Illit.
Majority of missiles and drones targeting Israel since the Gaza war began, have been intercepted by Israel’s advanced layers of air defences.
Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, is slated for a visit to Israel on Tuesday, marking the beginning of a wider tour of the Middle East. His agenda includes reinitiating the Gaza ceasefire talks, discussing the future of the enclave post the demise of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, although expectations of a breakthrough before the looming U.S. election remain minimal.
The visit is Blinken’s 11th to the region since October 7th, the day Palestinian Hamas militants began attacks in southern Israel, thereby instating the Gaza war. During this time, the Israeli military had amplified its campaign in both Palestinian enclave and Lebanon, directed against Iran-backed Hizbullah militia.
Mr Blinken has organised a weeklong excursion which will entail a visit to Jordan on Wednesday and Doha. This is set against the backdrop of the Middle Eastern region preparing itself for Israel’s reaction to Iran’s ballistic missile assault on the first of October.
A year ago, tension escalated between Israel and Hizbullah, when the group, supported by Iran, commenced rocket attacks on northern Israel, endorsing the Palestinian extremist group Hamas at the outset of the Gaza conflict.
The discord has escalated in recent days, with Israel launching airstrikes on southern Lebanon, the southern districts of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley. These attacks have resulted in the demise of several top Hizbullah leaders and the deployment of Israeli ground forces across the border. In retaliation, Hizbullah has launched rockets, reaching further into Israel. – Agencies