Politics Israel attacks Beirut's southern suburbs again

SDA

21.10.2024 - 23:32

Flames and smoke rise from the southern suburb of Dahiyeh after an Israeli airstrike. Photo: Bilal Hussein/AP/dpa
Flames and smoke rise from the southern suburb of Dahiyeh after an Israeli airstrike. Photo: Bilal Hussein/AP/dpa
Keystone

The southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut have once again been rocked by Israeli airstrikes.

According to the Lebanese state news agency NNA, the Haret Hreik district was one of the areas hit. According to Lebanese reports, one of the airstrikes hit the area around the university hospital. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, several people are said to have been killed.

Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari had previously announced further attacks against Hezbollah's financial structure in a speech. In a targeted air strike in Damascus, the successor to the recently killed finance chief of the Shiite militia was eliminated, said Hagari. The night before, an underground depot containing millions of dollars in cash and gold had already been hit. Hezbollah should not be given the opportunity to reorganize itself, he emphasized.

Hospital to be evacuated as a precaution

According to Israeli sources, another Hezbollah depot containing millions of dollars worth of foreign currency and gold is located in a bunker that is said to be hidden under a private clinic in the center of Beirut. Army spokesman Hagari emphasized that the al-Sahel clinic would not be bombed. "I would like to emphasize: We are not at war with the Lebanese people," Hagari said.

The director of the hospital, Fadi Alameh, denied the accusations and announced in an interview on Lebanese television that the hospital would be evacuated as a precautionary measure. He asserted that the hospital had no links to political parties and called on the Lebanese army and authorities to search it.

SDA