Deadly Israeli Strikes on Central Beirut Kill 22, Injure 117

Israeli airstrikes targeted the Ras el-Nabaa neighborhood in central Beirut late Thursday, killing at least 22 people and injuring 117 others.

The strikes, which took place around midnight without prior warning, hit two residential buildings in the heart of the capital, including an area housing many displaced individuals. This attack marks the third Israeli airstrike outside of Beirut's southern suburb, Dahiyeh, since Israel expanded its military campaign in late September. Previous strikes had targeted Beirut’s Kola district on September 29 and Bachoura on October 3.

Eyewitnesses reported feeling the shockwave from nearly a mile away, with buildings shaking and smoke rising from the bombed residential blocks. Residents evacuated their homes, gathering in nearby courtyards as emergency services rushed to the scene.

Videos shared by local media, and verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking team, depicted chaotic scenes in Ras el-Nabaa and the neighboring al-Nuweiri area, with smoke and flames engulfing the damaged buildings.

Earlier in the evening, Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health reported that 11 people had been killed and 48 injured in separate Israeli airstrikes on Beirut. The latest assault brings the number of Israeli strikes in and around central Beirut to three within the past month.

Simultaneously, in Gaza, 63 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on the same day.

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