Israel launched airstrikes on Monday that killed more than 270 Lebanese in the deadliest attack since Israel’s 2006 war with Hezbollah, and the Israeli military warned residents in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate ahead of expanded airstrikes targeting Hezbollah.
Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, with the main highway in the southern port city of Sidon packed with cars bound for Beirut, in the largest exodus since fighting in 2006. More than 1,000 people were injured in the attack, a staggering single-day toll for a country still reeling from last week’s deadly attacks on communications equipment.
The death toll exceeds the devastating port explosion in Beirut in 2020, when hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse detonated, killing at least 218 people and injuring more than 6,000.
In a recorded message to Lebanese civilians, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged them to heed Israel’s call to evacuate and said he “takes this warning seriously.”
“Please stay out of danger now,” Netanyahu said. “As soon as our operation is over, you can go home safely.”
The Israeli military said late Monday it had launched a targeted attack on Beirut. It did not provide details.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that the Bel Abed neighborhood in southern Beirut was hit by three missiles. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television said six people were wounded. The area has been cordoned off and journalists are not allowed to enter.
Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad told a news conference in Beirut that earlier attacks hit hospitals, medical centers and ambulances. The government ordered schools and universities to close across much of the country and began preparing shelters for displaced people from the south.
The Israeli military announced strikes on about 800 targets, saying it was aimed at pursuing Hezbollah weapons bases. Some strikes hit residential areas in towns in the south and eastern Bekaa Valley. One hit a forest as far away as Byblos in central Lebanon, more than 80 miles from the northern border of Beirut.
The military said it was expanding its air strikes into valleys along Lebanon’s eastern border with Syria. Hezbollah is already deeply entrenched in the valley, having been established in 1982 with the help of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
Israeli military spokesman Major General Daniel Hagari issued another warning, urging residents to immediately evacuate areas where Hezbollah weapons are stored, including in the valley. These warnings indicate that some residents may be living in or near the targeted buildings without knowing they are at risk.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah said in a statement that it fired dozens of rockets at Israel, including at military bases. It also hit facilities of the Haifa-based Rafael defense company for the second day in a row.
As Israel launched the attack, Israeli authorities reported a series of air raid sirens going off in northern Israel, warning of rocket attacks from Lebanon.
The evacuation warning, the first of its kind in nearly a year of escalating conflict, came after a particularly fierce exchange of fire on Sunday. Hezbollah fired some 150 rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel in retaliation for an attack that killed a senior commander and dozens of fighters.
While Israel is still fighting Hamas in Gaza and trying to repatriate hostages taken in an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, the growing number of strikes and counterattacks has raised fears of an all-out war. Hezbollah has vowed to continue its attacks in solidarity with the Palestinians and the Iran-backed militant group Hamas. Israel says it is committed to restoring calm on its northern border.
Associated Press journalists in southern Lebanon reported heavy airstrikes on many areas Monday morning, including some far from the border.
Lebanon’s state-run state news agency said the attack hit a forested area in the central province of Byblos, about 130 kilometers (81 miles) north of the Israeli-Lebanese border, the first since a firefight in October.
Israel also bombed targets northeast of Baalbek and Hermel, killing a shepherd and wounding two relatives, the news agency reported. A total of 30 people were said to have been injured.
The death toll announced by the Lebanese Ministry of Health is 274. The ministry said its request was aimed at preparing hospitals to handle people injured as a result of “Israeli’s expanding aggression against Lebanon”.
An Israeli military official said Israel was focusing on air operations and had no immediate plans for ground operations. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity under regulations, said the attack was aimed at curbing Hezbollah’s ability to launch more attacks against Israel.
Lebanese media reported that residents received text messages saying: “If you are in a building where Hezbollah stores weapons, please stay away from the village until further notice.”
Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makkari said in a statement that his office in Beirut received a recorded message asking people to leave the building.
“This happened within the framework of psychological warfare carried out by the enemy,” Makari said, urging people “not to pay too much attention to this matter.”
Communities on both sides of the border have been largely deserted as fighting continues almost daily.
Israel accuses Hezbollah of turning entire communities in the south into militant bases, hiding rocket launchers and other infrastructure. Even without the involvement of ground forces, this could lead to a particularly heavy bombing campaign by Israeli forces.
An Israeli airstrike on a Beirut suburb on Friday killed a senior Hezbollah military commander and a dozen fighters, as well as dozens of civilians, including women and children.
Thousands of communications equipment, mainly used by Hezbollah members, exploded in different parts of Lebanon last week, killing 39 people and injuring nearly 3,000, many of them civilians. Lebanon blamed Israel for the attack, but Israel did not confirm or deny any responsibility.
Hezbollah began firing on Israel the day after the Oct. 7 attack, allegedly to neutralize Israeli forces and help Palestinian militants in Gaza. Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict has intensified over the past year.
Israel has vowed to drive Hezbollah from its borders so its citizens can return home, saying it prefers to do so through diplomacy but is also willing to use force. Hezbollah has said it will continue its attacks until there is a ceasefire in Gaza, but that goal appears increasingly elusive as the war approaches its anniversary.
On October 7, militants led by Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping about 250 people. Most of the others who died were released during a week-long ceasefire in November.
The Israeli offensive has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants. The report said women and children accounted for slightly more than half of the victims. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 militants but has provided no evidence.
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