Israeli military says it strikes Beirut
PHOTO CAPTION: An Israeli fighter jet takes off at an unidentified location to conduct strikes on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon, in this handout photo released September 19, 2024. Israel Defense Forces/Handout via REUTERS
BEIRUT/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -The Israeli military said it had carried out a targeted strike in Beirut on Friday which security sources in Lebanon said had hit near key Hezbollah facilities in the southern suburbs of the city, marking a sharp escalation of the conflict between the sides.
Witnesses heard a blast in Beirut's Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs and smoke was seen rising over the area.
Hezbollah's al-Manar TV said the southern suburbs known as the Dahiyeh had been subjected to an act of aggression. Reuters witnesses heard jet noise over the city around the time of the attack.
Ignited by the Gaza war, the conflict has intensified significantly this week, with Hezbollah suffering an unprecedented attack in which pagers and walkie talkies used by its members exploded, killing 37 people and wounding thousands.
(Reporting by Tom Perry and Maya Gebeily in Beirut and James Mackenzie and Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
