The Israeli army strikes south of Beirut, Hezbollah fires rockets at Israel

In a continuation of recent tensions, Israeli airstrikes targeted southern Beirut, while Hezbollah retaliated by firing around 30 rockets into northern Israel on Wednesday, following the decision by Lebanon and Israel to initiate direct negotiations for a lasting peace.

Israel has urged residents of southern Lebanon, where the airstrikes are occurring, to evacuate a large area between the border and the Zahrani River, more than 40 km to the north.

According to the official National News Agency, two Israeli airstrikes targeted two vehicles on the highway connecting Beirut to the south, about twenty km south of the capital.

One strike hit a car in Jiyeh, while the other struck a van in the nearby area of Saadiyat, which are not Hezbollah strongholds, as reported by the agency.

An AFP photographer witnessed a burnt car and firefighters trying to extinguish the fire. Rescuers were recovering human remains from the vehicle and surrounding debris, while the military established a security cordon, causing a massive traffic jam on the road.

Since the massive airstrikes on “Black Wednesday” on April 8, which resulted in over 350 deaths in Beirut and elsewhere in the country, Israel has not targeted the Lebanese capital due to diplomatic pressures.

Rocket Attacks

In the south, Israel continued airstrikes on several locations where its army is conducting a ground offensive, with close combat reported with Hezbollah, as per the National News Agency.

The pro-Iranian group declared through one of its deputies, Hassan Fadlallah, that its fighters were “hindering the enemy soldiers from taking control” of Bint Jbeil, a town near the border where clashes are ongoing.

The pro-Iranian Hezbollah group, meanwhile, fired around thirty rockets into Israel on Wednesday morning, as confirmed by an Israeli army spokesperson to AFP.

The Islamist group claimed responsibility for multiple rocket attacks on northern Israeli locations close to the border.

Direct talks were held in Washington on Tuesday evening, the first in over 30 years, between Lebanon and Israel.

Both countries are gearing up for direct negotiations to establish lasting peace, as announced by the US State Department hosting the meeting, but a ceasefire has not been declared.

The Hezbollah group, a notable absentee from the talks, condemned the negotiations as a “surrender.”

Since Lebanon was dragged into the regional conflict with Iran by Hezbollah on March 2, Israeli airstrikes have led to 2,124 deaths and displaced over a million people.