Israel launches attack on Beirut after rejecting ceasefire

The Israeli military on Wednesday launched strikes in southern Beirut after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon, saying it would leave Hezbollah forces near his country’s border.

Black smoke was said to be rising from Beirut’s Haret Hreik area after two strikes, which followed an Israeli military warning for residents to evacuate.

The military said one of the strikes targeted weapons stockpiled by Hezbollah in an underground storage facility.

Netanyahu’s refusal to stop the offensive came as the United States raged pressure on Israel, criticising the bombing of Beirut, and urging more aid access for Gazans.

Netanyahu, in a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, said he opposed a unilateral ceasefire, which does not change the security situation in Lebanon and will only return it to the way it was.

Israel insists it needs a buffer zone along its northern border, free of Hezbollah fighters.

Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Naim Qassem, said the only solution was a ceasefire while threatening to expand its missile strikes across Israel.

“Since the Israeli enemy targeted all of Lebanon, we have the right from a defensive position to target any place in Israel,” he said.