Soon after Netanyahu’s UN address, Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah’s headquarters in Beirut

Intense Israeli airstrikes hit Beirut suburb, escalating tensions with Hezbollah, raising fears of all-out war.

The Israeli military said on Friday (September 27, 2024) it carried out a “precise strike” on the central headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut.

The Israeli army’s spokesman, Daniel Hagari, made the announcement in a televised address after the explosion in Beirut sent massive clouds of orange and black smoke billowing in the skies. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the U.N. earlier in the day.

A series of intense Israeli airstrikes hit one of Beirut’s heavily populated southern suburbs on Friday (September 27, 2024) as blasts were heard throughout the Lebanese capital.

The massive explosion was so powerful it rattled windows and shook houses some 30 kilometers north of Beirut. Ambulances were seen headed to the scene of the explosions, sirens wailing.

The strike came an hour after thousands of people attended the funeral of a top Hezbollah commander who was killed the day before.

“Earlier in the day, an Israeli airstrike killed a family of nine in a Lebanese border village,” authorities said, as Lebanon struggled to deal with a rising death toll, a wave of tens of thousands fleeing their homes, and the possibility of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah.

As the two sides continued to trade fire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed world leaders at the U.N., vowing to “continue degrading Hezbollah” until Israel achieves its goals along the Lebanon border, further dimming hopes for an internationally backed cease-fire.