Politics Israel reports attack on Hezbollah headquarters in Beirut

Israel's army says it has bombed the headquarters of the Shiite Hezbollah militia in a suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut. It was located under residential buildings, according to Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari. Dense clouds of smoke could be seen over Beirut and the shock waves could be felt in large parts of the city.

Hagari spoke of a targeted attack. According to unconfirmed media reports, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was the target of the attack. The caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister Nadschib Mikati instructed the authorities to "mobilize all affected units". This was necessary, "especially in view of the reports of a large number of victims", he said. The renewed aggression proves once again that the Israeli enemy is disregarding all international efforts to achieve a ceasefire.

Immediately before the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared at the UN General Debate in New York. He did not respond to specific demands for a three-week ceasefire made by the USA, Germany and other states - and instead spoke of further attacks.

Several explosions, massive damage

According to eyewitnesses, the massive airstrike in Beirut took place in the densely populated suburb of Haret Hreik near the international airport. Videos on social media showed and heard clouds of smoke rising into the sky after several explosions in various locations.

In his speech in New York, Netanyahu said: "We will continue to put pressure on Hezbollah until all our goals are achieved." He had previously stated that the attacks would continue until the Israelis evacuated from the northern border could return home safely. Around 60,000 residents of towns near the border have fled the almost daily bombardment by Hezbollah. This was triggered by the start of the Gaza war almost a year ago. According to Hezbollah, its attacks are carried out in solidarity with the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu went on to say that as long as Hezbollah chooses the path of war, "Israel has no other choice". His country had to defend itself against "savage murderers" who wanted to destroy it and the entire Western civilization.

The US government emphasized that the call for a ceasefire had been coordinated with Israel. The declaration was "not just written in a vacuum", said White House Communications Director John Kirby, "but also with Israel itself".

Hezbollah had previously continued its rocket fire on cities and towns in Israel. The Shia militia, which is allied with Iran, says it wants to support Hamas in the Gaza Strip in its fight against Israel and achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza war. Israel fired back on a similar scale for a long time. However, the country has massively stepped up its air strikes in Lebanon this week. Even before the attacks in Beirut on Friday, authorities reported around 700 deaths in Lebanon.

Tehran warns: will not remain indifferent

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the international community of incompetence and failure with regard to the ceasefire that has not yet been achieved. He warned that his country would not remain indifferent in the event of an all-out war. He also called for arms and trade sanctions against Israel.

Netanyahu warned Tehran urgently against intervening in the conflict. "If you attack us, we will attack you," he said in New York. "There is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach. And that applies to the entire Middle East."

Iran is considered Hezbollah's most important supporter. However, observers consider it unlikely that Tehran would rush to its aid in the event of a war. Iran's new government under President Massud Peseshkian is struggling with a severe economic crisis and is trying to forge a rapprochement with the West.

Fleeing from one crisis area to another

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is forcing tens of thousands of people to flee. According to the United Nations, well over 30,000 people have fled from Lebanon to Syria since the start of the heavy Israeli attacks. Around 80 percent of those who have fled are Syrian citizens, the others are predominantly Lebanese, said Gonzalo Vargas Llosa, representative of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Syria. "Both Syrians and Lebanese are moving from a country where there is war to a country that has been facing crises and conflicts for 13 years."

According to the UN, there were already 110,000 internally displaced persons in Lebanon before the recent escalation of the conflict with Israel. Since last week, 118,000 have been added, said Imran Riza, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Beirut.

Rockets on Tiberias, Haifa and other towns

According to Hezbollah, it fired rockets at the Israeli city of Tiberias and other towns on the Sea of Galilee. According to the Israeli army, most of the ten missiles were intercepted. One man was slightly injured by falling rocket debris.

According to the Israeli army, four drones approaching from Lebanon were also shot down near the border town of Rosh Hanikra on the Mediterranean. The port city of Haifa had previously been attacked with missiles. The air force had attacked the launch pad for these missiles and dozens of other Hezbollah targets.

What Israel wants to achieve and what Hezbollah is after

Israel wants its citizens to be able to live in peace and security in the north of the country in the long term. The government has long demanded that Hezbollah withdraw from the de facto Israeli-Lebanese border behind the Litani River in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was passed years ago.

Like Hamas and Iran, Hezbollah denies Israel's right to exist. The Israeli military fears that Hezbollah could recover from the heavy blows of recent days and weeks and regroup in the event of a ceasefire.

Hezbollah, on the other hand, does not want to lay down its arms until the "aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza has ceased", as Hezbollah leader Nasrallah repeatedly emphasizes. Hundreds of Hezbollah members have already lost their lives since the outbreak of fighting on Nasrallah's self-proclaimed "solidarity front". It would be tantamount to a "historic defeat" if the militia were to abandon this position now - after almost a year of continuous fighting, writes the think tank International Crisis Group.

SDA