From Basta to Bazourieh: Hezbollah Strongholds “Ignite” Lebanon

From the heart of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, to Tyre in the south, nothing rises above the scene but columns of smoke and the pervasive scent of death in every corner.

In the early hours of Saturday, an Israeli strike on a building in the densely populated Basta neighborhood in central Beirut killed 11 people and injured 63 others, according to a new toll announced by the Lebanese Ministry of Health.

The ministry stated in a communiqué that among the victims were “human remains recovered in large quantities, with the identities and final count of the martyrs to be confirmed after DNA testing.” Rescue operations to clear the rubble are ongoing.

The Israeli army said, “We targeted Hezbollah command centers and infrastructure in Beirut’s southern suburb,” noting that warnings were issued to strike buildings in Hadath and Bourj al-Barajneh in the same area.

The series of airstrikes completely destroyed a residential building, as the war between Israel and Hezbollah rages on despite international efforts to broker a ceasefire.

Residents of Beirut woke up to three massive explosions at dawn. The strikes completely demolished a residential building in the Basta neighborhood.

The official National News Agency reported that Beirut “woke up to a horrifying massacre, as Israeli warplanes entirely destroyed an eight-story residential building with five missiles on Al-Mamoun Street in Basta.”

Additionally, strikes targeted the southern suburb of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, following a day of intense bombings in this area and across southern and eastern Lebanon.

In the South as Well

Southern Lebanon also bore the brunt of the strikes. Local media reported that an Israeli airstrike targeted the town of Bazourieh in the Tyre district.

Two people were killed, and three others were injured in an Israeli raid on the town of Roum in southern Lebanon, according to local media reports.

The Israeli army, which occasionally issues evacuation warnings before carrying out strikes, claims to target “terrorist command centers of Hezbollah,” “weapons storage facilities,” and sites or individuals linked to the group.

Hezbollah had announced, following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel and the subsequent outbreak of war in Gaza, the opening of a “support front” for the Gaza Strip.

After a year of cross-border exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel, the Israeli army declared two months ago that it had shifted the focus of its military operations to its northern front with Lebanon.

Since then, it has launched a devastating airstrike campaign, primarily targeting Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut’s southern suburb, as well as in eastern and southern Lebanon. It has also initiated ground operations in southern Lebanon.