The health ministry reported that at least 492 people, including 35 children, were killed by Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon on Monday, making it the bloodiest day for cross-border fighting since the start of the Gaza conflict.
Arab nations vehemently denounced Israel for the increasing hostilities that had reached unprecedented heights in almost a year with Hezbollah.
After Hamas and other Palestinian militants attacked Israel on October 7, which attracted Hezbollah and other organizations supported by Iran, a conflict broke out.
As part of “Operation Northern Arrows,” the Israeli military struck 1,600 locations in southern and eastern Lebanon, including a “targeted strike” in Beirut, killing a “large number” of Hezbollah fighters, according to Israel.
Hezbollah said Ali Karake, its third-in-command, was alive and had moved to safety after a source said the strike on the capital targeted him.
Following reports of fresh assaults in eastern Lebanon by state media, the group stated early on Tuesday that it had fired “volleys” of missiles toward Israeli military locations.
When air raid sirens went out on Monday, residents of the coastal city of Haifa, Israel, were spotted fleeing for their lives.
According to Lebanon’s health ministry, the strikes caused 1,645 injuries and 492 deaths, including 35 children and 58 women. “Thousands of families” have been displaced, according to Health Minister Firass Abiad.
Smoke billowed into the sky from explosions close to the historic city of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon.
“We sleep and wake up to bombardment… that’s what our life has become,” said Wafaa Ismail, 60, a housewife from the southern village of Zawtar.
