Four killed in early morning rocket strikes on Beirut

Lebanon's Ministry of Health has confirmed that an early morning attack on Saturday, November 23, resulted in at least four fatalities and left at least 23 others injured.

The assault involved four rockets striking a residential building in the Basta neighbourhood, though the intended target remains unclear, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing.

On the evening of November 22, an evacuation order was issued for several districts in the Lebanese capital. In a concerning report, the health ministry indicated that 62 individuals were killed across the country in attacks over the preceding 24 hours, including a university hospital director and five medical staff members.

The Lebanese health ministry has accused Israel of committing “a series of war crimes by targeting medical personnel and destroying medical facilities.”

Additionally, four Italian UN peacekeepers were injured when live shells struck their position in southern Lebanon, as reported on November 22 via the official Telegram channel of the UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The report stated, “Rockets hit the UNIFIL headquarters in Sector West, injuring four Italian peacekeepers. They are now receiving treatment at the hospital. Fortunately, none of the injuries are life-threatening.” It also noted that a logistics area used by international military police was affected.

This incident marks the third attack on a UNIFIL base within a week, prompting calls for both sides of the conflict to refrain from hostilities near UN positions and to respect the inviolability of UN premises and personnel. UNIFIL emphasized that “any attack on peacekeepers constitutes a serious violation of international law,” and noted that “the rockets were likely fired by Hezbollah or affiliated groups.”

Previously, on November 18, Lebanon's Ministry of Health reported at least 11 fatalities resulting from Israeli raids on the outskirts of Tyre in southern Lebanon. Earlier, on November 15, the health ministry recorded 59 deaths linked to Israeli attacks, along with 182 local injuries.

On November 12, Israeli Defence Minister Yisrael Katz declared that there would be no ceasefire in Lebanon, stating that the Israeli military would continue operations against the Shiite Hezbollah movement until its objectives were met.

The escalation in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah began after incidents on September 17 and 18, during which numerous individuals, including Hezbollah personnel, were injured by explosions attributed to pagers and other communication devices, leading Lebanon to blame Tel Aviv. Since then, Israel has intensified efforts to target Hezbollah leadership and conduct strikes on Lebanese territory.

The broader regional conflict escalated on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a significant rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip, prompting immediate retaliatory strikes by Israel.

By Tamilla Hasanova