Israel pounds Beirut suburbs and south Lebanon after Hezbollah rocket barrage

The Israeli military has carried out several waves of air strikes across Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, after the Iranian-backed armed group Hezbollah launched about 200 rockets into northern Israel.

Many Israeli strikes were reported in the south of the country and Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold from which thousands of people have fled because of the intense bombardment over the past week.

Some strikes hit other parts of the capital, including the Corniche seafront. Lebanon's health ministry said 12 people were killed there overnight.

Hezbollah launched the rocket barrage across the Israeli border on Wednesday evening in an apparently co-ordinated attack with Iran.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday that the Israeli military had been instructed to prepare to broaden its operations in Lebanon in response.

The military subsequently expanded a blanket evacuation order for southern Lebanon, almost doubling the size of the zone it has said residents should leave for their safety.

It now covers almost the entire area south of the Zahrani river, which flows east to west about 40km (25 miles) from the Israeli border, according to a map posted online.

In an address to his nation, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said: "It is a war we did not want; on the contrary, we are working day and night to bring it to an end."

Lebanon was pulled into the conflict between Iran, Israel and the US 10 days ago, when Hezbollah launched rockets and drones into Israel in retaliation for the assassination of Iran's supreme leader and repeated Israeli strikes since a ceasefire ended their last war in 2024.

Israel said Hezbollah's attack justified launching a broader campaign against the group, including intense air strikes and commando raids inside Lebanese territory. It has said the campaign will continue until Hezbollah is disarmed.

At least 687 people, including 98 children, have been killed in Israeli attacks in Lebanon since then and 800,000 others have been displaced, according to Lebanese authorities.

Two Israeli soldiers have been killed in combat in Lebanon, according to the Israeli military.

On Thursday evening, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was carrying out waves of strikes targeting Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon and Beirut.

One hit a building in the capital's central Bachoura neighbourhood, less than 500m (1,640ft) away from a BBC team.

It followed a warning from the IDF that told residents it would be targeting a "a facility belonging to the terrorist group Hezbollah".

A warning hit came before the building was struck, sending a plume of grey smoke over the city. More strikes followed, shaking the windows of the building where the BBC team was.

Earlier, a large area at Ramlet al-Baida, on Beirut's Corniche, was cordoned off as officials inspected the scene of an overnight strike. A Lebanese military official said personnel were dealing with unexploded ordnance.

The Lebanese health ministry said 12 people were killed and 28 others injured after what appeared to be a direct hit on a car. There were reports of a second attack after people gathered to help, causing further casualties.

There were no specific warnings about the strike at the seafront, where hundreds of people displaced by the conflict were sleeping in makeshift shelters.

Khoudor Housseini, whose family was staying there after fleeing the town of Chmestar in the eastern Bekaa Valley, said an Israeli drone flying overhead fired a missile at a parked car.

"After about two minutes, it targeted the car again. One missile didn't explode," he told the BBC. "If it had exploded, maybe we would have all died... God protected us."

"I'm one of the people who wanted to go help, but I couldn't. I have a little baby with me."

Mohammed Ali, whose family was displaced from Beirut's southern suburbs, told the BBC: "We were sleeping here peacefully and didn't feel anything until something exploded and we woke up in a panic."

"They said one strike had happened so we went back to sleep, thinking the targeting was over, but then the second strike happened."

Mohammed said he grabbed two of his children and rushed them away from the area.

He complained that schools which have been transformed into displacement centres in the city were already full, leaving few options for people who have fled from their homes.

The IDF has not yet commented on the strike.

There was also heavy bombing in Beirut's southern suburbs, also known as Dahieh.

The IDF said 10 structures there used by Hezbollah were struck overnight, including an intelligence headquarters and a headquarters of the elite Radwan force, along with dozens of rocket launchers and Hezbollah operatives preparing to use them.

"The IDF is operating with determination against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation as a result of the terrorist organisation's decision to deliberately attack Israel on behalf of the Iranian regime," it added.

An IDF spokesperson said Hezbollah's cross-border attack on Wednesday was its biggest so far in this conflict, with approximately 200 rockets and 20 drones launched by the group at the same time as Iran launched a number of ballistic missiles towards Israel.

Hezbollah said on Wednesday night that it had targeted sites in northern Israel in response to what it called "the criminal aggression against dozens of Lebanese cities and towns".

Later, the group said the targets had included the headquarters of the Israeli military's northern command near Safed and two bases in the northern city of Haifa.

Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) also said its forces had carried out a "joint and integrated operation" with Hezbollah that focused on more than 50 targets in Israel.

Israeli authorities said one building was hit and damaged in the northern Galilee region, lightly wounding two people.

Another building was damaged by debris from an interception in Haniel, a farming community in the central Sharon region, but no injuries were reported.

On Thursday morning, Israel's defence minister said the Israeli military had been instructed to prepare for "expanding... operations in Lebanon and for restoring quiet and security to the northern communities" in response to the latest Hezbollah attack.

Katz also warned Lebanon's President Michel Aoun that if the Lebanese government "does not know how to control the territory and prevent Hezbollah from threatening northern communities and firing toward Israel, we will take the territory and do it ourselves."

French President Emmanuel Macron said late on Wednesday that he had spoken to Aoun about the threats to Lebanon's security and unity.

"Hezbollah made a major mistake in dragging Lebanon into a confrontation with Israel. It must immediately cease its attacks," Macron wrote on X. "For its part, Israel must clearly renounce any ground offensive in Lebanon."

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher has warned of "a moment of grave peril for Lebanon".

"The Lebanese people are doing everything they can just to stay afloat right now. And what they most need is Iran and Israel to take war somewhere else," he told the BBC.