Israel launched strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Monday, Lebanese state media said.
The strikes came after Hezbollah said it fired missiles and drones at Israel overnight in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“The southern suburbs of Beirut were targeted by a series of Israeli strikes,” the state-run National News Agency (NNA) said, according to AFP.
According to the BBC, residents of the Lebanese capital Beirut woke up to a series of explosions that rang through the city shortly before 03:00 local time as the Israeli military began attacking Hezbollah targets after the Iran-backed group fired rockets into northern Israel.
Hezbollah attacks, Israel retaliates
In a statement, Hezbollah said it was acting in retaliation for the killing of Khamenei, calling it a “legitimate act of self-defense.”
It said it fired “a volley of precision rockets and a swarm of drones” at a missile defense site in northern Israel, the BBC reported.
US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran killed Khamenei on Saturday 28 February.
The Israeli military confirmed it had launched strikes in response, saying it was moving “against Hezbollah’s decision to join the campaign” and would not allow the group to “pose a threat to the State of Israel and harm the civilians of northern Israel.”
“In response to projectile fire into northern Israel, the IDF is attacking Hezbollah targets across Lebanon,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.
“Hezbollah operates on behalf of the Iranian regime, opening fire on Israeli civilians and wreaking havoc on Lebanon,” he added in a post on X.
“IDF soldiers prepared for such a scenario as part of Operation ‘Roaring Lion’ and are prepared for the scenario on all fronts,” the statement said.
Israel and Lebanon agreed to a truce brokered by the United States in 2024, ending more than a year of fighting with Hezbollah that culminated in heavy Israeli strikes against the Iran-backed group. Since then, both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire.
Despite the agreement that followed 13 months of conflict, Israel continues to attack Lebanon almost daily on targets it says are linked to the group.
