Israeli air strikes hit southern Beirut after evacuation warning

Beirut — Israeli fighter jets launched a new wave of air strikes on the southern outskirts of Beirut on Thursday night local time, a few hours after Israel warned all residents to evacuate the entire Dahieh area, according to local television station al-Jadeed.

Earlier, the Israeli military issued an emergency warning, ordering residents across the southern outskirts of Beirut to immediately leave the area. This marked the first time Israel had called for a full evacuation of the area.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese Health Ministry said the death toll from Israeli strikes since Monday had risen to 123, with 683 others injured by Thursday night local time.

Amid rising tensions, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun spoke by telephone with French President Emmanuel Macron, informing him of the latest security developments in Lebanon and urging him to intervene with Israel to prevent attacks on the southern Beirut suburbs following the recent evacuation threats.

Separately, Macron also spoke with Lebanon’s Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri, saying he was ready to make the necessary contacts and to send emergency aid to Lebanon, according to the National News Agency.

The escalation came after Hizbullah on Monday fired missiles and drones toward Israel, saying the strikes were in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Israel’s repeated attacks on Lebanon.

Israel responded with large-scale air strikes against Hizbullah targets and deployed ground forces to southern Lebanon.