BEIRUT (VINnews) – The Israeli Air Force struck multiple targets in Beirut’s southern suburbs late Sunday, hitting high-rise residential buildings in the Dahiyeh area, a Hezbollah stronghold, amid escalating tensions in the region.

The strikes came hours after reports of rocket and drone launches from Lebanon toward northern Israel, which the Israeli military described as a violation of the November 2024 ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah. Israeli officials said the operations targeted Hezbollah infrastructure, including sites suspected of housing weapons or command facilities embedded in civilian structures.

Local media reported explosions rocking Dahiyeh, with thick smoke rising from at least three impacted high-rises. Lebanese security sources said rescue efforts were underway, though casualty figures were not immediately confirmed. Residents in the area described hearing successive blasts and fleeing buildings.

The Israeli military stated the strikes were in direct response to Hezbollah’s actions, including recent projectile fire across the border. It emphasized that targets were selected based on intelligence to neutralize threats while minimizing civilian harm, and that prior measures — such as warnings — had been employed in similar past operations.

Hezbollah has not immediately commented on the latest Beirut strikes, but the group has repeatedly accused Israel of violating the fragile truce, which ended more than a year of intense cross-border fighting. Lebanese officials, including President Joseph Aoun, condemned the attacks as breaches of sovereignty and called for international intervention to halt them.

The Dahiyeh suburb, long considered Hezbollah’s primary base in the capital, has been repeatedly targeted since the ceasefire. Israel maintains that the militant group continues to rearm and position assets in civilian areas, using residents as human shields — a charge Hezbollah denies.

The latest violence unfolded against the backdrop of the broader “Second Iran War,” with Israel and the United States conducting strikes on Iranian targets in recent days. In the past 24 hours, Israel reported intercepting dozens of projectiles from Iranian proxies, including from Lebanon.

Hezbollah supporters gathered in Dahiyeh earlier Sunday for a large rally mourning Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in recent strikes and hailed by the group as a martyr of the “resistance axis.” Participants waved Hezbollah and Iranian flags amid heavy security deployments by Lebanese forces and UNIFIL peacekeepers along the border.

The ceasefire, brokered by the United States in late 2024, aimed to end hostilities but has been strained by mutual accusations of violations. Israel has carried out near-daily strikes in southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley to prevent Hezbollah’s military buildup, while Hezbollah has been accused of maintaining fighters south of the Litani River and occasional fire.

Travel advisories from multiple countries urge avoiding southern Beirut and border regions due to the unstable security situation. The international community continues to monitor developments closely, with fears of wider escalation as regional tensions remain high.

VINnews will provide updates as more information becomes available.