Israeli airstrikes on the southern suburb of Beirut after a call to evacuate

BEIRUT — After issuing evacuation orders, the Israeli army carried out strikes on Thursday evening in the southern suburb of Beirut. It stated that it had "attacked terrorist targets of Hezbollah's Air Unit 127," according to a message released by its Arabic-speaking spokesperson.

The initial strikes targeted buildings identified as threatened, near the al-Qaem Mosque, in the Jamous-Hadeth neighborhood, according to the state-run National News Agency (NNA).

Earlier, at least eight warning strikes had been carried out around buildings designated as potential targets in Bourj al-Barajneh, Haret Hreik, and Hadath.

Around 9:30 p.m., about an hour before the strikes, the Israeli army spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, had issued an "urgent alert" for the residents of the southern suburb, specifically citing the neighborhoods of Hadath, Haret Hreik, and Bourj al-Barajneh. He accompanied his message with maps showing the targeted buildings, marked in red. "You are near facilities of the terrorist party Hezbollah," he wrote. "For your safety and that of your families, you must leave these buildings and move at least 300 meters away."

In Hadath, two of the threatened buildings are located between Dani Public School and Toulouse College, while three others are situated between the village of Kafaat and the Beirut Pilot High School. In Haret Hreik, two targeted buildings are located between the Arts High School and the Sayyed al-Shouhada complex. Another building, located on the other side of this complex, in Bourj al-Barajneh, is also affected.

In a separate statement, the Israeli army later announced that it would "strike underground drone production sites, deliberately located in the heart of civilian areas." These activities would constitute, according to it, "a flagrant violation of the agreements between Israel and Lebanon," referring to the cease-fire concluded in late November thanks to mediation by Washington and Paris.

After the Israeli threats, Israeli drones flew over the southern suburb, while heavy gunfire was heard, aiming to drive residents away from the targeted areas. According to our correspondent in the south, phone calls were received by residents of several localities, urging them to leave in anticipation of possible strikes. These alerts were notably reported in Harouf (Nabatieh district) and Zrariyeh (Saida), where people left their homes without it being immediately possible to confirm whether the calls actually came from the Israeli army. Some of the contacted residents in the south reportedly own properties in the southern suburb of Beirut and were invited to evacuate these properties before the announced strikes.

Lebanon 'will never give in'

The office of the U.N. Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plaschaert, condemned the Israeli strikes that have “revived panic and fear on the eve of the Eid al-Adha festival.” In a statement published on Telegram, she said, “We reiterate our call to stop any action that could further jeopardize the ceasefire agreement and the implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 [2006].” The statement added, “Established mechanisms and diplomatic instruments are available to all parties to address disputes or threats and to prevent unnecessary and dangerous escalation.”

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun strongly condemned the “Israeli aggression.” He denounced the strikes as a “blatant violation of an international ceasefire agreement,” brokered under the sponsorship of France and the United States, as well as a violation of “fundamental principles of law and humanitarian and U.N. resolutions on the eve of a sacred religious holiday.” He called the strikes “irrefutable proof of the aggressor’s rejection of the demands for stability, resolution, and a just peace in the region.” According to him, this is “a message from the author of these atrocities to the United States, its policies, and its initiatives above all, sent via the mailbox of Beirut and the blood of its innocent civilians,” affirming that Lebanon “will never give in” to pressure.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also “firmly condemned the repeated Israeli threats and attacks against Lebanon, particularly the southern suburbs of Beirut.” In a message posted on X, he said these actions “constitute a systematic and deliberate aggression against our country, its security, stability, and economy, especially on the eve of the holidays and the tourist season.” He criticized them as a “blatant violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty and U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701,” calling on the international community to “assume its responsibilities by deterring Israel from continuing its attacks” and forcing it to fully withdraw from Lebanese territory, where it still occupies several border positions.

The cease-fire between Lebanon and Israel ended over a year of hostilities, including two months of open warfare between the Israeli army and the Shiite group Hezbollah, which emerged greatly weakened from its involvement supporting Hamas in the war triggered by Hamas’s attack on southern Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023.

Hezbollah opened a front on October 8 by firing rockets from southern Lebanon into northern Israel. Despite the ceasefire, Israel continues to regularly carry out strikes across Lebanon against what it presents as Hezbollah targets or fighters, asserting that it has US support for these actions.