Israeli army warns Lebanese villagers again
Spokesperson Avichay Adraee has issued an “urgent” statement warning residents of Lebanese villages to move at least 1km (0.6 miles) away from buildings it claimed are being used by Hezbollah.
The statement by the Israeli army also said that the air attacks continue.
As we previously reported, cars carrying Lebanese families fleeing Israel’s attacks, as well as ambulances and fire department vehicles, were hit on Monday, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.
Death toll in Israeli attacks on Lebanon rises: Health Ministry
The death toll from Israeli attacks across Lebanon since Monday has risen to 558, including 50 children and 94 women, according to Lebanon’s Health Minister Firass Abiad.
He added that at least 1,835 people were wounded in Israeli air raids that hit Beirut and southern Lebanon.
Updates from Lebanon’s Health Ministry
Lebanon’s Health Minister Firass Abiad has held a news conference in Beirut.
Here is what he said:
- The death toll has risen to 558, including 50 children and 94 women. This refutes Israel’s claims that they have been targeting Hezbollah fighters.
- At least 1,835 people were wounded, and 54 hospitals are treating the patients.
- Four paramedics have been killed and 16 wounded.
- This is a time of war, and emergency plans have been activated.
- The government has agreed to provide financial support for those affected.
‘Total disregard for international law’: NGO
Lebanon-based NGO CARE International has said it launched a humanitarian response in the aftermath of Israel’s deadly strikes.
Hazem Fahmy, MENA regional director of CARE, said it was “shocking to witness once again in this region the total disregard for international law,” in a reference to the continuing conflict in Gaza.
Michael Adams, country director of CARE in Lebanon, said civilians were paying the highest price.
“People have been living in fear for weeks, at a time when the country is already experiencing a massive economic crisis, and still reeling from the Beirut port explosion four years ago,” he said.
“The situation is very tense here in Lebanon. All the roads leading to Beirut from the south and the Bekaa Valley are now flooded with people attempting to flee the bombardment, leaving everything behind.”
Displaced families still arriving at Beirut schools-turned-shelters
I’m at a facility that has two public schools within the grounds and it is now home to nearly 120 families. The people who are in charge of this facility say that families are still arriving.
Most of them got here very early this morning. There are families with a lot of children, many small children, who have been displaced and they are provided here with water and electricity.
Mattresses have also been donated and everything else they need is being collected from the community in the area that we’re in within the capital. The classrooms here have all been turned into shelters for the families and they are at full capacity.
The caretakers here told me that they are only able to accommodate a few more families, with very little space left. They said people have been coming here in a state of shock – they are confused, they are angry, they are worried and they are not sure how they will get by tomorrow, as they are only here for today and they don’t know what will happen to them tomorrow.
These are two of the nearly 150 schools that have been allocated to be turned into shelters by the government.
And I have to point out that the people coming here are not only coming from the southern part of the country. There are also people here from the southern suburb of Beirut, people who have left the Dahiyeh neighbourhood that has been attacked twice by Israel over the past few days.
So some people are internally displaced even within the capital itself.
