BEIRUT (Reuters) – Blasts and thick smoke were seen over Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon early on Friday amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces.
Israel carried out the air strikes in the area, Reuters witnesses said, the first strikes there in nearly a week. Reuters images, filmed from Baabda looking into Beirut city, showed bright flashes in the night sky followed by sound of explosions.
Israel launched its major offensive in Lebanon a month ago, saying it was targeting the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah group to secure the return home of tens of thousands of Israelis evacuated from the north due to cross-border rocket attacks.
The conflict in Lebanon has dramatically escalated over the past five weeks, with most of the 2,800 deaths reported by the Lebanese health ministry for the past 12 months occurring in that period.