A loud explosion was heard in the area shortly after residents were warned to leave, according to the witness. The strike formed part of a broader wave of Israeli attacks across Lebanon, including additional raids on the Lebanese capital as well as southern and eastern regions.

Lebanon’s health ministry said earlier strikes on Beirut killed at least six people and wounded 24 others. Separate airstrikes in southern and eastern Lebanon killed at least 14 people, the state news agency reported, citing the ministry.

The Israeli military said it had begun targeting Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon, indicating a widening scope of operations beyond isolated strikes. Wednesday’s attacks suggest a sustained escalation, with multiple regions coming under fire within a single day.

The latest strikes add to a growing toll from the conflict. More than 800 people have been killed in Lebanon since the escalation began, while over 800,000 have been displaced from their homes, according to available figures.

The escalation follows Hezbollah’s March 2 attack on Israel, which the group said was carried out in response to the killing of Iran’s supreme leader. Israel has since launched an expanded offensive, drawing Lebanon deeper into a broader Middle East conflict.

In an interview, Herzog said “Europe should support any effort… to eradicate Hezbollah,” while also welcoming diplomatic initiatives, including an offer by Emmanuel Macron to host direct talks between Israel and Lebanon.

The Israeli military said its troops had begun “limited and targeted ground operations” against Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon, describing the campaign as part of broader defensive efforts to dismantle infrastructure and neutralize threats to northern Israel.

The operations followed intensified air and artillery strikes in border areas. Military chief Eyal Zamir said more than 400 Hezbollah fighters had been killed in the latest phase of fighting.

Lebanon’s government said more than one million people had been displaced within two weeks of fighting. Authorities reported that Israeli strikes since March 2 had killed 886 people, including 111 children, according to state figures.

The conflict widened after Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel on March 2, citing retaliation for the killing of Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes. Israel has since responded with extensive air raids and troop incursions.

Hezbollah said it fired rockets and drones at northern Israel, including the city of Nahariya, where emergency services reported injuries and property damage.

Regional and international concern has grown over the potential for further escalation. Turkey condemned Israel’s ground operations, warning of worsening instability and the risk of a humanitarian crisis.Leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom said a large-scale Israeli offensive could have severe humanitarian consequences and lead to a prolonged conflict.

Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz said displaced Lebanese civilians should not return to areas south of the Litani River until security conditions for northern Israel residents improve, as the military signalled operations would continue as needed.

Tedros said the global health body had verified that the victims included doctors, paramedics, and nurses working at the facility. In a statement posted on X, he described the incident as a “tragic development” amid the rapidly intensifying crisis in the Middle East.

According to the WHO chief, the deaths followed another attack earlier in the day in the southern Lebanese village of Al Sowana, where two paramedics were killed when a health facility came under fire. The combined toll brought the number of health workers killed within 24 hours to 14.

The strikes come as Israel continues an extensive aerial campaign targeting the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah across southern Lebanon.

The bombardment campaign, which Israel says aims to curb Hezbollah’s military capabilities, has already resulted in significant casualties and widespread displacement.

Lebanese authorities and humanitarian agencies report that more than 770 people have been killed since the escalation began, while hundreds of thousands have fled their homes amid the growing violence.

Hezbollah has responded by launching hundreds of rockets toward northern Israel, triggering air defense responses and raising fears of a broader regional conflict.

International organizations have repeatedly warned that attacks on healthcare facilities and medical personnel violate international humanitarian law and further deepen the humanitarian crisis in conflict zones.

WHO has called for the protection of health workers and medical infrastructure, urging all parties to respect international law and ensure safe access to healthcare for civilians caught in the crossfire.

Humanitarian organization Norwegian Refugee Council said the number of displaced people now represents roughly one in seven residents of Lebanon. The government has so far been able to accommodate only about 120,000 people in shelters as authorities scramble to open additional facilities and bring in emergency supplies.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said more than 700 people, including 103 children, have been killed since the fighting escalated.

Thousands of families fleeing Israeli evacuation orders have struggled to find accommodation, forcing many to sleep in tents, vehicles or on the streets of the capital Beirut.

Fatima Nazha, a wheelchair user who fled Beirut’s southern suburbs after evacuation warnings, said she spent two days sleeping outdoors with her family before moving into a tent at the country’s largest stadium after schools designated as shelters reached capacity.

Authorities have converted the stadium into a temporary shelter housing more than 800 displaced people in semi-open corridors beneath the stands. Facilities include basic toilets and sinks but limited electricity and no showers.

Humanitarian agencies say years of financial strain and underfunding have limited their ability to respond to the rapidly escalating crisis.

“The needs are escalating much faster than our capacity to respond,” said Mathieu Luciano, head of the International Organization for Migration in Lebanon, during a recent briefing.

Displaced residents have reported rising rents and stricter hotel screening in Beirut after Israeli strikes targeted locations where authorities said members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard were present.

An overnight Israeli strike in the Ramlet el-Bayda district of Beirut killed at least eight people and wounded more than 30, according to local officials, in an area where displaced families had been camping along the seafront.

The latest wave of displacement began after Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at the start of the wider regional war.

Israel subsequently intensified air strikes across Lebanon and issued evacuation notices for dozens of villages south of the Litani River, later expanding warnings to residents of Dahiyeh, a densely populated area on Beirut’s southern edge.

Traffic congestion stretched for miles on major highways leading north from southern Lebanon as residents attempted to flee bombardment.

Along the border, some villages remained briefly populated as residents weighed whether to evacuate, but many ultimately fled after continued strikes and drone activity near the United Nations-monitored Blue Line separating the two countries.

A spokesperson for the Israeli military did not immediately comment when asked about the Hezbollah statement.

Hezbollah said the clash occurred after Israeli forces conducted an airborne operation in eastern Lebanon, an area where the group maintains a presence. The statement did not provide further details on the scale of the raid or whether there were casualties.

The reported raid comes amid intensifying hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, which have exchanged attacks since the conflict escalated last week. The war marks one of the most serious confrontations between Israel and the Lebanese armed group in years.

Israeli officials have said the military campaign is aimed at weakening Hezbollah’s operational and financial capabilities.

Separately, the Israeli military said it planned to strike a financial body associated with Hezbollah, according to a statement, underscoring Israel’s effort to disrupt the group’s funding channels as the fighting continues.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran and one of the most heavily armed non-state groups in the Middle East, has long maintained military infrastructure across parts of Lebanon, including areas close to the Israeli border.

The strike marked the first attack within the city limits of Beirut since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah resumed last week. It came amid continued airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs as well as southern and eastern Lebanon, areas where Israel says militant infrastructure linked to Iran-backed groups is concentrated.

Israel’s military said the operation targeted senior commanders from the Quds Force, the overseas arm of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The military did not publicly identify those killed.

“The commanders of the Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps operated to advance terror attacks against the state of Israel and its civilians, while operating simultaneously for the IRGC in Iran,” the Israeli military said in a statement.

An Israeli military source said the strike targeted five senior Quds Force members involved in intelligence and financial operations connected to Iranian activity in Lebanon.

Lebanon’s health ministry said four people were killed in the drone strike in the capital. The ministry said the cumulative death toll from Israeli strikes across Lebanon since the escalation began has reached 394 people.

The health ministry said those killed include at least 83 children and 42 women. Lebanese authorities do not differentiate in official tallies between civilians and fighters.

The attack in Beirut represents a significant expansion of Israel’s operations, which had previously focused largely on Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon and areas near the Syrian border.

Israel’s military said it has killed approximately 200 Hezbollah militants since the start of the conflict, according to military spokesman Nadav Shoshani, who provided the figure during an online briefing. Hezbollah has not released an official count of its fighters killed.

The Israeli army also reported its first battlefield losses since the war began, announcing on Sunday that two Israeli soldiers had been killed in southern Lebanon.Military officials did not provide details about the circumstances surrounding their deaths.

The latest escalation follows Hezbollah rocket fire into northern Israel earlier in the week, which drew large-scale Israeli airstrikes across Lebanese territory.

Lebanon became directly involved in the broader confrontation between Iran and a U.S.-Israel alliance after Hezbollah, which is backed by Tehran, launched attacks toward Israel on Monday.

Israel responded with extensive bombardment targeting southern and eastern Lebanon and areas near Beirut.

Earlier in the conflict, Israel also carried out a rare airborne raid deep inside Lebanese territory that Lebanese authorities said killed 41 people.

The expansion of Israeli operations into Beirut highlights the widening geographic scope of the conflict as regional tensions linked to Iran continue to intensify

Speaking during the Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square, the pontiff said “deeply troubling news” continued to arrive from Iran and the broader region, expressing concern about the humanitarian and political consequences of the escalating violence call for ceasefire and dialogue

Addressing thousands gathered in the square, Pope Leo appealed for an immediate halt to military attacks and urged efforts to reopen channels for dialogue.“Let us raise our humble prayer to the Lord that the roar of bombs may cease, that weapons may fall silent, and that space may be opened for dialogue in which the voices of peoples can be heard,” he said.The pope framed the conflict as a source of growing fear and hostility, warning that continued fighting risks deepening divisions across the region.fears of wider regional spilloverThe pontiff also expressed concern that the conflict could spread beyond its current boundaries, drawing additional countries into the confrontation.He specifically referenced Lebanon, describing it as “dear Lebanon,” and warned that the escalation could drag neighbouring states into the violence.

The Vatican has frequently used the weekly Angelus address to comment on international crises, urging diplomacy and humanitarian restraint during periods of conflict.Pope Leo’s remarks come as hostilities involving Iran and regional actors have intensified, raising concerns among international leaders and religious figures about the potential for a broader Middle East crisis.

The warning from Hezbollah came early on Friday and appeared aimed at residents of Israeli communities close to the frontier. The group said Israel’s military actions against Lebanon, including what it described as attacks on civilian infrastructure and the displacement of residents, would not go unanswered.The exchange of warnings reflects a sharp escalation in rhetoric and military posture between the two sides as hostilities expand across the Israel-Lebanon frontier.

Hezbollah issues evacuation warningIn its Telegram statement, Hezbollah accused Israel of violating Lebanese sovereignty and targeting civilian areas, saying Israeli military operations and the displacement of residents had crossed a threshold.“Your military’s aggression against Lebanese sovereignty and safe citizens, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and the expulsion campaign it is carrying out will not go unchallenged,” the group said in the message directed at Israeli residents near the border.

The warning was issued in Hebrew, a move often used by Hezbollah to communicate directly with Israeli audiences during periods of heightened confrontation.Israel rejects evacuation demandIsraeli authorities said they would not comply with Hezbollah’s demand and indicated that residents of border towns would remain in place despite the warning.Israel has also deployed additional troops into Lebanon, describing the move as a defensive measure aimed at protecting Israeli communities near the frontier.Israeli officials have repeatedly said the military steps are intended to safeguard citizens living close to the border as tensions with Hezbollah intensify.Beirut suburbs already under warningHezbollah’s evacuation notice followed a separate warning from Israel issued less than a day earlier, when Israeli authorities urged civilians to leave the southern suburbs of Beirut.

The advisory prompted residents to flee parts of the capital known as Dahiyeh, an area widely regarded as a stronghold of Hezbollah.Witnesses and local reports described an exodus from sections of the neighbourhood following the Israeli warning, as civilians sought safer areas away from potential military targets.The back-to-back warnings from both sides illustrate the rapidly deteriorating security situation along the Lebanon-Israel border, where rhetoric and military positioning have sharpened in recent days.Israel and Hezbollah have a long history of confrontation along the frontier, and exchanges of threats and military movements often raise fears of broader escalation. The latest warnings to civilians on both sides underscore the growing strain on border communities as tensions continue to mount.

According to the judicial officials, Gov. Riad Salameh, his brother Raja Salameh and an associate, Marianne Hoayek, were charged with corruption and ordered detained. Their assets were also frozen.

The case is separate from other legal proceedings against Salameh underway in Lebanon. In late February, Beirut’s public prosecutor Raja Hamoush charged the three with corruption, including embezzling public funds, forgery, illicit enrichment, money-laundering, and violation of tax laws.

Judge Helena Iskandar, who is representing the Lebanese state at the questioning in the European probe, filed the charges Wednesday against the governor and the other two others, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the case.

The European delegation — with representatives from France, Germany, and Luxembourg — spent about two hours at Beirut’s Justice Palace waiting for Salameh. The Europeans were to question Salameh through another Lebanese judge, acting as a go-between. Under Lebanese laws, they cannot directly question Salameh.

Salameh’s lawyer showed up and submitted a petition that his client not be questioned by foreign judicial officials. The request was rejected by the prosecutor’s office and a new session was scheduled for Thursday. It remained unclear if Salameh would show up at that time.

It was the European delegation’s second visit to Beirut after a trip in January, when they questioned nine people, including current and former central bank officials, as well as the heads of several banks in the crisis-hit Mediterranean country.

The European delegation is investigating the laundering of some $330 million. The questioning was expected to last until Friday, the judicial officials said.

Lebanon is grappling with the worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history. The economic meltdown, which began in October 2019 and is rooted in decades of corruption and mismanagement by the country’s political class, has plunged more than 75% of the tiny nation’s population of 6 million into poverty.