Israeli Strikes Target Densely Populated Apartment Buildings in Lebanon, Killing Six

Lebanon has reported that unwarned Israeli strikes in central Beirut in the early hours killed at least six people. The Israeli military has warned of attacks on a third district in the Lebanese capital.

According to AFP on Wednesday, 18 March 2026, Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East conflict on 2 March when the Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched rockets toward Israel in response to US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Israel has responded with intensive strikes across several Lebanese regions and ground operations in the south, and has repeatedly attacked central Beirut, both with and without advance warning.

The Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) reported that Wednesday’s early morning attack struck an apartment in the Zuqaq al-Blat neighbourhood in the city centre, a densely populated area close to government headquarters and several embassies.

The strike reportedly occurred near where Israeli military had targeted the Beirut branch of Al-Qard Al-Hassan, a financial company linked to Hezbollah, last week.

The NNA stated that two additional strikes targeted two apartments in the central Basta district, another densely populated area where Israel conducted operations during the 2024 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

An AFP correspondent witnessed emergency responders at the Basta scene where apartment walls across two adjoining floors appeared destroyed by the blasts.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Health reported preliminary casualty figures for both strikes: six dead and 24 injured. The ministry added that bodies at the scene require DNA testing to confirm their identities.