BEIRUT/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – At least 37 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of Beirut on Friday, including three children and seven women, Lebanon’s health ministry said on Saturday.
Hezbollah said overnight that those killed in the deadliest attack in the year of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel included 16 of its members, and that senior leader Ibrahim Aqil and another top commander, Ahmed Wahbi, were among the dead.
The Israeli army, in a post on X, said the attack hit the underground group of Aqil and the senior commander of Hezbollah’s elite force Radwan, and “almost broke” the chain of command of Hezbollah’s military.
Heavy cross-border attacks continued on Saturday, with Israeli warplanes carrying some of the heaviest bombs in the 11-month war in southern Lebanon and Hezbollah claiming rocket attacks on military targets in northern Israel.
Friday’s attack quickly escalated the conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed group, and led to another attack on Hezbollah after two days of attacks this week in which fences and walkie-talkies used by its members were blown up.
The death toll in the attack rose to 39, and more than 3,000 were injured.
The attack on the communications device is believed to have been carried out by Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.
Hezbollah-appointed transport minister Ali Hamieh told reporters at the scene of Friday’s attack that at least 23 people were still missing.
“Israel’s enemies are taking territory for war,” he said.
The ministry has sent vehicles and equipment to help rescuers dig out the collapsed buildings.
“We have taken women and children from under the rubble,” he said.
‘NEW PHASE’
Hezbollah confirmed Aqil’s death in a statement after midnight calling him “one of its top leaders”.
It said overnight that 15 other members were also killed, including senior commander Wahbi, who oversaw the military operations of Radwan’s forces during the Gaza war until early 2024.
The strike on Friday afternoon targeted the building next to the nursery, which suffered from the impact of the attack, said a security source.
A second security source said multiple missiles struck the building’s garage. The blast tore into the lower level of the building as Aqil found the other commander inside.
In a brief statement on Friday afternoon carried by Israeli media, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel’s intentions are clear and that its actions speak for themselves.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who said this week that Israel launched a new phase of the war on the northern border, sent in X: “The order of operations in the new phase will continue until the goal is achieved: the safe return of northern residents to their homes.”
Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border since Hezbollah began firing rockets at Israel in October in sympathy with the Palestinians in Israel’s nearly year-old war against Hamas in Gaza.
The Israeli military said on Saturday that airspace in northern Israel – from the northern city of Hadera – was closed to private flights, but the move did not affect international flights.
“These restrictions are in place to maintain flight safety and in accordance with operational activities,” the military said.
‘DANGEROUS CYCLE OF VIOLENCE’
With at least 70 people killed in Lebanon this week, the death toll in the country since October has surpassed 740. The current conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is the worst since the all-out war in 2006.
The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine-Hennis Plasschaert, said on Friday the attack on a densely populated area on the southern outskirts of Beirut was part of “a very dangerous cycle of violence with devastating consequences. It must stop now.”
Friday’s attack marked the second time in less than two months that Israel has targeted Hezbollah’s military commander in Beirut. In July, an Israeli airstrike killed Fuad Shukr, the group’s top military commander.
While the current conflict has largely been in areas on or near borders, this week’s escalation has raised concerns that it could escalate and escalate.