At least 23 people still missing after Beirut blast
It was one of the fiercest Israeli bombardments of the nearly year-old conflict. In southern Lebanon, people described huge explosions that lit up the night sky and shook the ground as Israel carried out its latest strikes.
Hezbollah-aligned Transport Minister Ali Hamieh told reporters at the scene of Friday’s deadly attack in a Beirut suburb that at least 23 people were still missing.
At least 38 were confirmed killed, including 16 Hezbollah members along with women and children. More than 60 people were wounded.
“The Israeli enemy is taking the region to war,” Hamieh said.
The scene of the Israeli air strike in a Beirut suburb
Man ‘lightly injured’ in Hezbollah attack on northern Israel: Report
Israeli Army Radio is reporting that a 60-year-old man was “very slightly injured” after Hezbollah fired 10 missiles at Israel’s Ramat David airbase in northern Israel.
The outlet added that Israel’s military is responding to the missile volley with attacks on southern Lebanon. The Israeli military in a post on X said it intercepted most of the missiles and that a “fall was detected in the area”. It said the incident was under review.
As we reported earlier, the Israeli military said it has launched about 400 attacks on southern Lebanon since Saturday afternoon.
Smoke billows at the site of an Israeli air strike on the outskirts of the southern Lebanese village of Zawtar late on Saturday
Hezbollah claims attack on Israel’s Ramat David Airbase
In a statement on Telegram, the Lebanese group said it fired dozens of missiles at the Ramat David Airbase in northern Israel.
Hezbollah said the assault was a response to Israel’s repeated attacks on Lebanon as well as in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
In a separate post, the group noted that Ramat David is the airbase where Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that the “centre of gravity” in Israel’s war has shifted to its northern border with Lebanon.
Hezbollah targets farthest point in Israel since October 8
Hezbollah has issued a statement claiming responsibility for attacking the Ramat David Airbase to the east of Haifa with what it described as the Fadi 1 and Fadi 2 missiles.
This is the first time that Hezbollah has launched rockets towards this area. It’s the farthest point since the beginning of the October 8 front in Lebanon.
Given the pictures and the videos are coming [put], many of the projectiles that were seen, some of them were intercepted. Though we are seeing some impacts here and there.
The statement released by Hezbollah said that this is in retaliation for attacks on different regions and areas in Lebanon and the fall of civilians.
They kept distance from saying that this is in retaliation for the attacks on Tuesday and Wednesday, the pager attacks… and the assassination of one of its commanders. That would mean that there might be more retaliation coming.
