At least 35 children killed and thousands of people fleeing amid airport chaos as new wave of Israeli airstrikes hits Lebanon
Israel’s army radio and Lebanon’s National News Agency both reported a fresh wave of Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon on Tuesday morning as thousands continued to take to the roads to flee the south of the country.
An official from Unicef said that at least 35 children had been killed so far in the airstrikes, which have killed nearly 500 people and wounded thousands of others. Reuters, citing an official from the World Health Organization, reports that some hospitals have been overwhelmed by the number of dead and injured, which come on top of last week’s pager and walkie-talkie detonations that killed dozens and wounded thousands of others. That attack was widely attributed to an Israeli attempt to target Hezbollah operatives, although nobody has claimed responsibility for the mass sabotage of the electronic devices.
Options for leaving the country are becoming limited, with over 30 flights cancelled at Beirut’s international airport, with destinations in Europe and the Middle East affected. Qatar Airways, Turkish Airways and various airlines from the United Arab Emirates are among those who have withdrawn services.
Before this week’s escalation, tens of thousands of people had already been displaced from the southern area of Lebanon because of months of exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah and other anti-Israeli forces. About 60,000 people have also had to evacuate their homes in northern Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has set as an explicit war goal for them to be able to return.
Michael Adams, the Lebanon country director for Care International UK, said “All the roads leading to Beirut from the south and the Beqaa Valley are now flooded with people attempting to flee the bombardment, leaving everything behind. Civilians are paying the highest price”. The Israeli air force claimed it struck about 1,600 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.
Earlier a barrage of about 50 rockets from the direction of Lebanon were fired at Israel, with some debris falling into open ground and starting fires. Israel’s military reported that emergency services were attending, but there were no casualties. Hezbollah claimed it targeted several Israeli military targets overnight, and also the Megiddo airfield near the northern Israeli town of Afula.
Key events
In diplomatic reaction to the Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said that Russia views Israel’s actions as “potentially extremely dangerous” and warned they could destabilise the region.
The UN human rights chief Volker Türk has made a general appeal for people with interests in the region to help calm the situation, saying they should exert their influence “to avert further escalation and do everything they can to ensure full respect for international law.”
China has said it fully supports Lebanon’s sovereignty, and said that foreign minister Wang Yi met his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib in New York, where world leaders and top diplomats are gathering for the UN general assembly.
The Hamas-led health ministry in Gaza has raised the death toll of people it claims have been killed by Israel’s military offensive there since 7 October to 41,467 Palestinians, with 95,921 wounded. In the same timeframe, Israel says 346 of its service personnel have been killed during ground operations inside Gaza.
It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures being issued during the conflict.
With reports that the healthcare system in Lebanon is at risk of being overwhelmed by casualties from a series of Israeli airstrikes on the country, the UN office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs in the occupied Palestinian territory has posted to social media a reminder that the healthcare system in the Gaza Strip is also under duress. It posted to say “The health crisis in Gaza is deepening. Only 17 of 36 hospitals remain functional – all partially. Just 57 of 132 primary healthcare facilities can operate. Shortages of fuel and medicine are crippling health facilities.”
At least 35 children killed and thousands of people fleeing amid airport chaos as new wave of Israeli airstrikes hits Lebanon
Israel’s army radio and Lebanon’s National News Agency both reported a fresh wave of Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon on Tuesday morning as thousands continued to take to the roads to flee the south of the country.
An official from Unicef said that at least 35 children had been killed so far in the airstrikes, which have killed nearly 500 people and wounded thousands of others. Reuters, citing an official from the World Health Organization, reports that some hospitals have been overwhelmed by the number of dead and injured, which come on top of last week’s pager and walkie-talkie detonations that killed dozens and wounded thousands of others. That attack was widely attributed to an Israeli attempt to target Hezbollah operatives, although nobody has claimed responsibility for the mass sabotage of the electronic devices.
Options for leaving the country are becoming limited, with over 30 flights cancelled at Beirut’s international airport, with destinations in Europe and the Middle East affected. Qatar Airways, Turkish Airways and various airlines from the United Arab Emirates are among those who have withdrawn services.
Before this week’s escalation, tens of thousands of people had already been displaced from the southern area of Lebanon because of months of exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah and other anti-Israeli forces. About 60,000 people have also had to evacuate their homes in northern Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has set as an explicit war goal for them to be able to return.
Michael Adams, the Lebanon country director for Care International UK, said “All the roads leading to Beirut from the south and the Beqaa Valley are now flooded with people attempting to flee the bombardment, leaving everything behind. Civilians are paying the highest price”. The Israeli air force claimed it struck about 1,600 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.
Earlier a barrage of about 50 rockets from the direction of Lebanon were fired at Israel, with some debris falling into open ground and starting fires. Israel’s military reported that emergency services were attending, but there were no casualties. Hezbollah claimed it targeted several Israeli military targets overnight, and also the Megiddo airfield near the northern Israeli town of Afula.
Israeli army radio reports that another wave of Israeli airstrikes against Lebanon has begun.
More details soon …
Care International UK, an NGO which has been working in Lebanon for almost 20 years, has launched a humanitarian response to the crisis unfolding in Lebanon, with the local regional director, Hazem Fahmy, saying “It is shocking to witness once again in this region the total disregard for international law.”
Describing scenes of panic in the country has people sought to move away from araes being targeted by Israel’s airstrikes, country director Michael Adams said:
The situation is very tense here in Lebanon. All the roads leading to Beirut from the south and the Beqaa Valley are now flooded with people attempting to flee the bombardment, leaving everything behind. Civilians are paying the highest price, and women and girls are disproportionately affected. The people of Lebanon need help to cope with this new crisis, and quickly. Humanitarian agencies like Care and our partners cannot reach people under bombing. Humanitarians must also be protected.
Many flights into and out of Beirut have been cancelled already today. Flights affected include those to Egypt, Germany, Iraq, Jordan, Switzerland, Turkey, the UAE. “Ongoing regional developments” has been cited by Etihad Airways as their reason.
While attention is focused on Israel’s airstrikes on Lebanon, which have killed nearly 500 people in the last 24 hours, Israel also continues to carry out strikes on the Gaza Strip, which it has been bombarding for over 11 months.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that “paramedics recovered the bodies of five slain people and a number of wounded, following an Israeli raid that targeted a house” in Khan Younis, while another two people were killed and five injured by a separate Israeli bombing in the area. The Zeitoun neighbourhood in Gaza City has also again been a target, Wafa reports. The claims have not been independently verified.
Israel’s air force has confirmed that there was damage caused to buildings in the Upper Galilee area by the latest barrage of rockets from the direction of Lebanon, and that “Israeli fire and rescue services are currently operating to extinguish fires caused by the strikes in the area”. It reported no casualties.
Israeli and Lebanese media are reporting continued strikes on either side of the UN-drawn blue line that separates Israel and Lebanon. Haaretz reports that about 50 rockets have been fired into northern Israel, with at least one fire breaking out as a result. Lebanese outlets report airstrikes in the Beqaa Valley and north of the city of Baalbek.
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