‘Very violent’ Israeli strikes hit south Beirut: Lebanese media

Official Lebanese media said five Israeli strikes hit south Beirut and its outskirts Saturday, four of them “very violent,” after the Israeli army called residents to evacuate what it called the Hezbollah bastion.

“Israeli enemy warplanes carried out four very violent strikes on (Beirut’s) southern suburbs, and one strike on the Chweifat” area, with ambulances rushing to the site, Lebanon’s National News Agency said.

AFP footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the targeted areas, with one strike creating a ball of flame that rose into the air while flares shot up amid thick smoke.

The NNA later said air traffic at Lebanon’s only airport in Beirut was “ongoing despite the Israeli enemy’s aggression on the southern suburbs. Several Middle East Airlines planes have just landed.”

The Israeli army earlier on Saturday night had announced a new call for residents to evacuate from Beirut’s southern suburbs, as it continued to target what it said were Hezbollah positions in the Lebanese capital.

“For your safety and that of your family members, you must immediately evacuate the designated buildings and those adjacent to them and move away from them at least 500 meters,” said spokesperson Avichay Adraee on social media, alongside satellite images highlighting areas in the Burj el-Barajneh, Haret Hreik and Chouaifat al-Amrussiya neighbourhoods.