3 killed, 6 injured in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut airport road

ISTANBUL

Three people were killed, and six others injured Wednesday in two Israeli airstrikes targeting vehicles on the road leading to Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that an Israeli drone struck a vehicle on the airport highway before another car was targeted minutes later in the same area.

The Israeli army claimed that two Hezbollah members were targeted in the Beirut area but did not provide further details.

Israel’s Channel 12 also reported that the intended target was Hezbollah’s official responsible for “fire management,” though the person’s identity was not disclosed.

Meanwhile, Lebanese media said that Israeli warplanes carried out an airstrike on the city of Choueifat, south of Beirut.

The Israeli military said it had completed a “wave of attacks” in Lebanon, claiming that Hezbollah infrastructure had been destroyed.

According to the statement, the strikes targeted Hezbollah rocket launch sites south of the Litani River as well as a workshop used to produce drones.

In a separate development, the Israeli army said sirens were activated in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights and the northern Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona after a drone launch from Lebanon was detected.

Early Monday, Hezbollah said it targeted a military site in northern Israel with rockets and drones in response to ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon and the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei amid US-Israeli strikes on Iran since Saturday.

Following the attack, the Israeli military announced the launch of an “offensive campaign” against Hezbollah and carried out a series of airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs and areas in southern Lebanon.

While Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure, Lebanese media report that civilian facilities have also been hit.

Israel also imposes strict restrictions on publishing information about casualties resulting from Iranian or Hezbollah missile strikes or interceptions and bans the circulation of related footage.

Israel’s war on Lebanon, which began in October 2023 and escalated into a full-scale conflict in September 2024, has killed more than 4,000 people and injured around 17,000 others.