On October 5th, a series of explosions were reported in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon. Earlier that day, the Israeli military had issued evacuation warnings to residents in the area. According to military sources, Israeli forces have targeted over 2,000 Hezbollah military sites since announcing limited ground operations in Lebanon.
An Arabic spokesperson for the Israeli military issued a warning that day, indicating that certain buildings marked on a provided map contained Hezbollah facilities and that airstrikes were imminent. Residents were urged to evacuate the area immediately.
Eyewitnesses reported that shortly after the evacuation alerts were issued, explosions reverberated through the southern suburbs of Beirut, accompanied by rising smoke, as noted by Reuters. The French news agency also reported that explosions continued throughout the early morning hours.
Hezbollah has claimed that clashes with Israeli military forces continued along the border.
On October 4th, the Israeli Defense Forces reported that approximately 250 Hezbollah fighters had been killed in the ongoing ground operations and airstrikes since the announcement of limited ground actions. They highlighted that more than 2,000 Hezbollah military sites had been attacked and Defense Minister Gallant warned, “more raids will follow.”
On the same day, it was reported that around 180 rockets were launched from Lebanon toward northern Israel, including over 70 rockets fired within just two hours that evening. While many of these rockets were intercepted, some landed in open areas.
The United Nations expressed serious concern about the increasing civilian casualties near Beirut. Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric stated, “The harm caused to Lebanese civilians by Israel’s actions against Hezbollah is completely unacceptable.” He underscored the importance of all parties involved in protecting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Reports indicate that many buildings in the southern suburbs of Beirut have been reduced to rubble. Local resident Nouhad Chaib expressed uncertainty about the future, saying, “We are alive, but we don’t know how long we can last,” after being displaced from the southern area. Al Jazeera noted that while the suburbs were once densely populated, residents are now fleeing as winter approaches, raising urgent concerns for those left without shelter.
