Israeli Airstrike Hits Beirut & Kills 1 Person in Escalating Tensions With Hezbollah

Israel carried out a rare strike on Beirut Tuesday, killing at least one person and raising the stakes in the escalating tensions with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

The Israeli military said the strike targeted the militant commander allegedly behind the deaths of 12 children and teens in a weekend rocket attack on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, as well as the deaths of numerous Israeli civilians hit in other strikes.

Israel has blamed the rocket attack Saturday in the town of Majdal Shams on the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which has denied any role. “Hezbollah crossed a red line,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant posted on the platform X shortly after Tuesday’s strike.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that the strike, carried out with a drone that launched three rockets, killed one woman and wounded several other people, some of them seriously. The wounded were taken to nearby hospitals. 

Bahman Hospital near the site of the blast called on people to donate blood.

It was not immediately clear if the intended target of the strike had been killed or injured.