Lebanon thought there was a ceasefire – then Israel unleashed deadly blitz

Lebanon thought there was a ceasefire – then Israel unleashed deadly blitz

Lebanon had hoped for a moment of calm. The two-week ceasefire, announced by US President Donald Trump, was meant to end hostilities in the Middle East. Yet, just hours later, Israeli jets launched a 10-minute aerial assault, killing at least 203 people and injuring over 1,000, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. The sudden violence left the region stunned, with local and Western leaders condemning the attack, but the US offered no criticism of its ally in the conflict.

Iran called the strike a “grave violation” of the ceasefire agreement, urging the US to stop the Israeli “aggression.” Lebanese officials reported that more than 1,700 people have died since Israel’s latest campaign began last month. The Israeli government claimed its operations aim to weaken Hezbollah and accomplish “remaining military objectives.” The war’s origins trace back to US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February, which sparked retaliation from Tehran against Gulf allies and attacks from Iran’s proxies—Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen—against Israel.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, acting as mediator, announced the two-week pause in fighting. He stated the US and its allies had agreed to an immediate ceasefire “everywhere, including Lebanon and elsewhere.” The negotiations are set to take place in Pakistan on Friday, with the US presenting a 15-point plan and Iran offering a 10-point counter-proposal. Iran’s plan demands a halt to hostilities on all fronts, emphasizing “the resistance of Lebanon” as a key target. However, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government insisted the ceasefire did not cover Lebanon, citing Hezbollah as the reason for the exclusion.

At 14:00 in Beirut (11:00 GMT), the skies darkened as Israeli jets executed a coordinated strike. The IDF described it as the “largest co-ordinated attack across Lebanon since Operation Roaring Lion began,” targeting over 100 Hezbollah sites in Beirut, Bekaa, and southern Lebanon. Densely populated areas of central Beirut, including the city center, were hit, marking some of the heaviest strikes since Hezbollah entered the conflict in early March. The attack caught residents off guard, as Tallet el Khayat—a wealthy district in western Beirut—had not been a typical target.

Hezbollah’s response came hours later with rockets fired toward Israel. On Thursday, Israel continued its campaign, reporting the killing of “70+ terrorists” and the elimination of Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary to Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem. However, the BBC has yet to confirm these claims. In Beirut, the air was heavy with sorrow on a sunny morning, as the nation observed a day of mourning. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam described the casualties as “martyrs and wounded,” while President Joseph Aoun labeled it a “massacre.”

“This is new to Beirut,” said Ziad Samir Itani, leading the civil defense team, as exhausted volunteers searched for survivors across the country. Despite 22 years of experience, the teams struggled to cope with the relentless attacks over six weeks. In Tallet el Khayat, a 10-story residential building was reduced to rubble, leaving families without hope of recovering loved ones.