Lebanon.. 13 Israeli raids on Beirut suburb, one of which targeted the vicinity of Hariri Hospital

13 Israeli raids targeted the southern suburbs of Beirut on Monday evening, killing four civilians, and one of them targeted the vicinity of Hariri Hospital in the Lebanese capital.

The official Lebanese National News Agency reported that "13 raids have been launched so far by Israeli warplanes on the southern suburbs of Beirut." It noted that "an Israeli air raid on the Ouzai area" in the southern suburbs occurred, noting that this is the first time this neighborhood has been targeted since the escalation between Hezbollah and Israel began.

The agency also said that "an enemy raid targeted the Haret Hreik area near the Alama station in the southern suburb." It later reported "a new raid on Haret Hreik."

An Israeli aggression without prior warning targeted near Rafik Hariri Hospital in the Janah area pic.twitter.com/O7tzUAOkHx

— Ramia Al-Ibrahim - Ramia Al-Ibrahim (@ramiaalibrahim) October 21, 2024

The Lebanese Amal Movement denied the news that a movement office in the Al-Janah area or any of its cadres were targeted.

The agency said that one of the raids targeted "the vicinity of Rafik Hariri University Hospital in the Janah area" near the southern suburb, which is the largest government hospital in Lebanon.

An official in the Islamic Health Authority, a Hezbollah-affiliated ambulance service, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that rescue operations were continuing following the raid on the Ouzai area, adding that “the raid occurred close to the time the evacuation warning was announced, as there was no time for people to flee.”

"There was panic among the people and the area was crowded with people. People took to the streets," he continued, explaining that rescue operations were ongoing. He later reported that there were 4 martyrs and a large number of wounded, and that there were still a number under the rubble.

While most of the neighborhoods in the southern suburb of Beirut have been emptied of their residents, the Ouzai neighborhood is still crowded with residents because it has not been targeted before. A security source reported that the Middle East Airlines runway was changed after an Israeli raid near Beirut International Airport, which is close to the southern suburb, according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.

The source, who requested anonymity, said, "The Middle East Airlines landing strip was changed due to the proximity of the main runway to the location of the raid that targeted Awzai."

IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee posted a warning on the X platform indicating the areas that must be evacuated, including an area near Beirut airport. The warning read: “You are located near Hezbollah facilities and interests that the IDF will act against in the near future.”