Israel conducted airstrikes on the southern outskirts of Beirut on Tuesday, marking the second such incident in less than a week, resulting in the deaths of three individuals and raising concerns about the potential unraveling of a fragile cease-fire.
The Israeli military stated that the strike, which occurred in the Dahiya area just south of Beirut, targeted a member of Hezbollah who was allegedly involved in planning a “significant and imminent” attack against Israel. Further details were not provided.
The airstrikes, executed without prior evacuation warnings, resulted in three fatalities and at least seven injuries, according to the Lebanese health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister, Nawaf Salam, characterized the attack as a “clear breach” of a cease-fire agreement established between Israel and Hezbollah in November. This truce had halted one of Lebanon's deadliest wars in decades, but recent escalations in violence and tension have heightened concerns regarding a potential resurgence of conflict.
Despite the existing cease-fire, Israel has consistently targeted alleged Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, while Hezbollah has refrained from retaliating. Analysts suggest that Hezbollah, weakened by the prolonged conflict with Israel, has little motivation to instigate another war at this time.
No immediate response was provided by Hezbollah regarding the latest airstrike.
On Friday, the Israeli military also conducted airstrikes in Dahiya after issuing evacuation orders to residents in the densely populated area. This marked the first time since the cease-fire that the Lebanese capital was targeted. The strikes followed rocket fire from Lebanese territory into northern Israel.
Hezbollah denied involvement in that incident and reaffirmed its commitment to the cease-fire. The Israeli military claimed that the strikes were aimed at a location storing Hezbollah drones and that additional targets in southern Lebanon were attacked in response to the rocket fire, with three casualties reported by Lebanon’s health ministry.
Hezbollah had engaged in rocket and drone attacks against Israeli positions in solidarity with Hamas following an assault on Israel on October 7, 2023. This escalation transformed nearly a year of low-level skirmishes into a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah, resulting in nearly 4,000 deaths and significant destruction in Lebanon.