Israeli airstrikes rock Beirut; Hezbollah command center hit

BEIRUT/JERUSALEM — 

A question of aerial raids deed Beirut's confederate suburbs aboriginal Saturday arsenic Israel stepped up attacks connected Hezbollah, aft a monolithic onslaught connected the Iran-backed movement's bid halfway that seemingly targeted person Hassan Nasrallah.

Reuters witnesses heard much than 20 airstrikes earlier dawn connected Saturday. Abandoning their homes successful the confederate suburbs, thousands of Lebanese congregated successful squares, parks and sidewalks successful downtown Beirut and seaside areas.

"They privation to destruct Dahiye, they privation to destruct each of us," said Sari, a antheral successful his 30s who gave lone his archetypal name, referring to the suburb helium had fled aft an Israeli evacuation order. Nearby, the recently displaced successful Beirut's Martyrs Square rolled mats onto the crushed to tried to sleep.

Israel's subject said aboriginal Saturday that astir 10 projectiles had crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory and that "some" had been intercepted. A connection from the subject did not place the projectiles, which it said were detected aft sirens sounded successful the Upper Galilee area.

An unprecedented 5 hours of continuous strikes aboriginal Saturday followed Friday's attack, by acold the astir almighty by Israel connected Beirut during astir a twelvemonth of warfare with Hezbollah. It marked a crisp escalation of a struggle that has progressive regular rocket and rocket occurrence betwixt the 2 sides.

The latest escalation has sharply accrued fears the struggle could spiral retired of control, perchance drafting successful Iran, Hezbollah's main backer, arsenic good arsenic the United States.

There was nary contiguous confirmation of Nasrallah's destiny aft Friday's dense strikes, but a root adjacent to Hezbollah told Reuters helium was not reachable. The Lebanese equipped radical has not made a statement.

Israel has not said whether it tried to deed Nasrallah, but a elder Israeli authoritative said apical Hezbollah commanders were targeted.

"I deliberation it's excessively aboriginal to say... Sometimes they fell the information erstwhile we succeed," the Israeli authoritative told reporters erstwhile asked if the onslaught Friday had killed Nasrallah.

Earlier, a root adjacent to Hezbollah told Reuters that Nasrallah was alive. Iran's Tasnim quality bureau besides reported helium was safe. A elder Iranian information authoritative told Reuters that Tehran was checking his status.

The Israeli subject said successful a connection that it had killed the commandant of Hezbollah's rocket unit, Muhammad Ali Ismail, and his lawman Hossein Ahmed Ismail.

Death toll rises

Hours earlier the latest barrage, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the United Nations that his state had a close to proceed the campaign.

"As agelong arsenic Hezbollah chooses the way of war, Israel has nary choice, and Israel has each close to region this menace and instrumentality our citizens to their homes safely," helium said.

Several delegations walked retired arsenic Netanyahu approached the lectern. He aboriginal chopped abbreviated his New York travel to instrumentality to Israel.

Lebanese wellness authorities confirmed six dormant and 91 wounded successful the archetypal onslaught connected Friday -- the 4th connected Beirut's Hezbollah-controlled confederate suburbs successful a week and the heaviest since a 2006 war.

The toll appeared apt to emergence overmuch higher. There was nary connection connected casualties from the aboriginal strikes. More than 700 radical were killed successful strikes implicit the past week, authorities said.

Hezbollah's al-Manar tv reported 7 buildings were destroyed. Security sources successful Lebanon said the people was an country wherever apical Hezbollah officials are usually based.

Hours later, the Israeli subject told residents successful parts of Beirut's confederate suburbs to evacuate arsenic it targeted rocket launchers and weapons retention sites it said were nether civilian housing.

Hezbollah denied immoderate weapons oregon arms depots were located successful buildings that were deed successful the Beirut suburbs, the Lebanese equipped group's media bureau said successful a statement.

Alaa al-Din Saeed, a nonmigratory of a vicinity Israel identified arsenic a target, told Reuters helium was fleeing with his woman and 3 children.

"We recovered retired connected the television. There was a immense commotion successful the neighborhood," helium said. The household grabbed clothes, recognition papers and immoderate currency but were stuck successful postulation with others trying to flee.

"We're going to the mountains. We'll spot however to walk the nighttime -- and time we'll spot what we tin do."

Around 100,000 radical successful Lebanon person been displaced this week, expanding the fig uprooted successful the state to good implicit 200,000.

Israel's authorities has said that returning immoderate 70,000 Israeli evacuees to their homes is simply a warfare aim.

Fear the warring volition spread

Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets and missiles against targets successful Israel, including Tel Aviv. The radical said it fired rockets connected Friday astatine the bluish Israeli metropolis of Safed, wherever a pistillate was treated for insignificant injuries.

Israel's aerial defence systems person ensured the harm has truthful acold been minimal.

Iran, which said Friday's onslaught crossed "red lines," accused Israel of utilizing U.S.-made "bunker-busting" bombs.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Washington was not informed of that onslaught beforehand. President Joe Biden was being kept abreast of developments.

At the U.N., wherever the yearly General Assembly met this week, the intensification prompted expressions of interest including by France, which with the U.S. has projected a 21-day cease-fire.

"This indispensable beryllium brought to an extremity immediately," French Ambassador Nicolas de Riviere told a Security Council meeting.

At a New York quality conference, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: "We judge the mode guardant is done diplomacy, not conflict... We volition proceed to enactment intentionally with each parties to impulse them to take that course."

Hezbollah opened the latest bout successful a decades-long struggle with a rocket barrage against Israel instantly pursuing the October 7 onslaught connected Israel by the Palestinian militant radical Hamas successful Gaza past year.