Israeli airstrikes hit neighborhoods in Beirut on Thursday evening, killing 22 people and wounding 117, Lebanon’s health ministry said. On Thursday, Israeli forces also fired on United Nations peacekeepers in southern Lebanon and wounded two of them, drawing severe backlash from various countries, including their key ally, the USA.
A spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said: “We are deeply concerned about reports that Israeli forces fired on two positions and a tower used by UN peacekeepers in Lebanon.”
Israel has warned the peacekeeping forces to move away from their current positions as it is obstructing their ground invasion.
The Israeli offensive against Lebanon has intensified as they have launched hundreds of air strikes in densely populated areas of Beirut and other parts of Lebanon to root out Hezbollah “terror targets”.
Their attacks have led to major blows to the Iran-backed Hezbollah after the death of chief Hassan Nasrallah and his successor, Hashem Saffiedine, among other important leaders.
Thursday’s strikes was also, reportedly, an attempt to kill Wafiq Safa, a top security official with the militant group, though Hezbollah’s Al Manar TV confirmed that Safa was not in the buildings that were bombed.
Hezbollah also fired rockets at Israel in retaliation on Thursday, setting off air raid sirens in parts of northern Israel. Israeli military said, several of these drones were intercepted.
Lebanon’s crisis response unit said more than 2,169 people have been killed due to Israeli strikes since September.
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Source: HT
