Qassam Muaddi
Mondoweiss / September 27, 2024
Israel completely flattened at least six residential buildings in Beirut’s southern Dahiya district with 2000-pound bombs amid claims that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was the target.
Israel conducted an unprecedented airstrike on Beirut’s southern Dahiya district on Friday evening in what Israeli media described as an attempt to assassinate Hezbollah’s Secretary General, Hassan Nasrallah.
The strike targeted and levelled six residential buildings. The Israeli army’s spokesperson, Daniel Hagari, released a video statement shortly after the strike claiming that the buildings contained Hezbollah’s “Central Headquarters.” Lebanese media reported that over 10 Israeli missiles were dropped in less than three minutes on the complex, situated in the Haret Hreik area in Dahiya. The Israeli army’s radio said that Israeli F-35 fighter jets dropped 2000-pound bunker-buster bombs on the residential buildings.
Axios reported that high-ranking Hezbollah leaders were meeting in the targeted place, while an Israeli army official stated that the available information is not enough to determine whether Nasrallah was killed or not. The Iranian news agency, Tasnim, quoted Lebanese sources saying that Nasrallah was in a safe place, denying the Israeli claims, while Reuters and AFP quoted sources described as “close to Hezbollah” saying that Nasrallah was alive.
Israeli reports indicated that Netanyahu had approved the strike before leaving for New York to attend the UN General Assembly meeting. Netanyahu cut his New York visit short to return to Israel upon news of the strike.
While Israeli media quoted an unnamed Israeli official saying that Israel informed the U.S. about its intention to conduct the strike, Axios quoted U.S. officials denying these claims. For its part, the Pentagon said in a statement that the U.S. has been sharing intelligence with Israel throughout the current war, but that it never took part in either the latest strike in Dahiya or previous ones in the southern Beirut district.
Meanwhile, Lebanese first responders continue rescue efforts to pull out survivors from under the rubble. As of the time of writing, the number of civilians killed has not been specified.
The Israeli army’s radio quoted a military source saying that any person who was present in the targeted buildings “will not come out alive.” The Lebanese Health Minister, Firas al-Abyad, said that some of the buildings targeted were “full of civilian residents.”
The Israeli strike comes a day after an earlier strike on Dahiya that killed Muhammad Surour, described as the head of Hezbollah’s drone unit. The strike also comes a day after Netanyahu’s office officially denied having given the green light for a U.S.-French proposal for a ceasefire deal between Lebanon and Hezbollah.
Israel has continued to expand its bombing campaign on Lebanon since last Monday, attacking Lebanese towns across southern Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley, and Mount Lebanon. Hezbollah has also expanded its rocket strikes, which have reached the lower Galilee, targeting Israeli military bases and airfields, Haifa’s seaport, and the Raphael military manufacturing company.
Following the most recent strike on the Dahiya district, Israel has put its forces along the Lebanese border on alert, while the municipalities of Tel Aviv and Haifa have opened underground shelters in preparation for a large Hezbollah retaliation in the coming hours. Earlier this week, the Israeli cabinet discussed the possibility of a ground invasion into southern Lebanon, while the Israeli army called two reserve divisions to the northern front, according to Israeli reports.
Since the beginning of the current Israeli offensive on Lebanon, Israeli strikes have killed at least 1,250 Lebanese and wounded over 5000 more.
Qassam Muaddi is the Palestine Staff Writer for Mondoweiss
