ISTANBUL

Israeli airstrikes on Thursday hit the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut, according to Lebanon’s state news agency NNA.

The two Israeli strikes targeted the area widely known as Hezbollah’s stronghold in the capital’s southern suburbs, according to NNA.

The Israeli army said it began carrying out strikes on Beirut, claiming the attacks targeted infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah.

Earlier Thursday, Hezbollah said Israeli forces withdrew after clashes with its fighters in southern Lebanon.

In separate statements, the group said it targeted Israeli military sites in northern Israel with a swarm of drones.

Hezbollah said it struck the Ein Zeitim base north of Safed with loitering drones and also targeted the Rafael military industries complex south of the city of Acre using attack drones.

The situation escalated in Lebanon on Monday after Hezbollah targeted a military site in northern Israel with rockets and drones in response to ongoing Israeli airstrikes and Khamenei’s killing.

The Israeli army launched a series of airstrikes in response, killing at least 72 people and injuring nearly 450 others. The military also launched a ground incursion into southern Lebanon.

Israel has repeatedly violated a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, signed in November 2024, carrying out near-daily strikes that have left hundreds dead and wounded.

Israel began its offensive against Lebanon in October 2023 and escalated it into a full-scale war in September 2024, killing more than 4,000 people and wounding about 17,000.

The US and Israel have continued a large-scale attack on Iran since Saturday, killing nearly 900 people, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and top military officials. Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, as well as Gulf countries that are home to US assets.