BEIRUT, Lebanon. — Lebanese civilians They fled on Monday from the south of the country and the suburbs of on Beirutseeking refuge in the capital of Lebanon after a new and deadly escalation between Israel and the group Lebanese political-paramilitary Hezbollah, Iran’s allywhich left more than 50 dead.
Los Hezbollah missile and drone attacks against northern Israel after midnight on Sunday triggered waves of Israeli airstrikes and also drew the harshest criticism yet against the Iran-backed group from the country’s authorities.
Attack leaves 52 dead
Israel, in addition to Iran, now has another open front much closer, in Lebanon.
Informa @mcampdelacreuJerusalem correspondent
▶https://t.co/w5yKelrlK4 pic.twitter.com/uglG0uQIIZ
— TVE News (@telediario_tve) March 2, 2026
He Ministry of Health reported that at least 52 people were killed and 154 wounded in overnight attacks in the suburbs of Beirut and southern Lebanon. He Ministry of Education announced that the schools will also be closed on Tuesday due to the situation.
During the day, the Israeli army carried out dozens of air strikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut, as well as in southern and eastern Lebanon. Shortly after sunset, an Israeli airstrike on a Beirut neighborhood caused widespread damage and the Israeli military said it targeted a senior Hezbollah official.
Israel says Hezbollah intelligence official killed
This’s not Gaza… this’s Lebanon
Israel just carried out 100+ of airstrike on residential areas in Lebanon, violating Security Council resolution 1701, ceasefire agreement, and international law with absolutely no consequences
This’s another war crime and the ICC remains silent pic.twitter.com/P7KaC0BjR2
— Mohamad Safa (@mhdksafa) March 2, 2026
The Israeli military previously reported that it attacked more than 70 weapons storage facilities, launch sites and missile launchers belonging to Hezbollah. The army also maintained that it killed Hezbollah’s top intelligence official, Hussein Mokaled.
Also on Monday, the Israeli army launched a wave of attacks against branches of al-Qard al-Hasana microfinance institution linked to Hezbollah, which Israel says is being used to finance the group’s military wing.
The group Palestinian Islamic Jihad confirmed that the commander of its military wing in Lebanon was killed in an airstrike south of Beirut overnight.
#TCSN | 🇮🇱 🇱🇧 At least 52 people were killed and 154 injured after Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, according to the most recent balance released by the Lebanese government.
Via: Al Jazeera English. #Internationals pic.twitter.com/NOtpIpQxEf
— TCS NEWS (@tcsnoticias) March 2, 2026
The Israeli military said Hezbollah fired a drone toward northern Israel on Monday night, adding that it was successfully intercepted.
Lebanese government asks Hezbollah to hand over its weapons
#Israel bomb #Lebanon after Hezbollah’s entry into the war in defense of Iran
The Lebanese Government has banned the military activity of the Shiite group to avoid being dragged into the conflict.https://t.co/mDwGUXYNpc through @mundiario
— MUNDIARIO (@mundiario) March 2, 2026
The Lebanese government condemned Hezbollah’s decision to enter Iran’s war with Israel and the United States, calling the militant group’s actions illegal and demanding that it hand over its weapons.
“There is a part that wants to drag the country into issues that have nothing to do with us,” the Lebanese Minister of Information quoted the president. Joseph Aoun during an emergency cabinet meeting that addressed the escalation. Aoun was referring to Hezbollah.
Civilians flee bombings
Highways were jammed, with people fleeing Israel’s heaviest bombardment of Lebanon in more than a year, which began hours after Hezbollah fired into Israel for the first time in more than a year.
Ali Hamdan He was caught in a traffic jam on the road between his village Deir al-Zahraniin the south, and the port city of Sidon. A journey that should have lasted half an hour took seven hours.
“I don’t know how long it will take to get to Beirut,” he said. “I’m heading towards Beirut, but I don’t know where yet. We don’t have a place to stay.”
In a Beirut public school, hastily converted into a temporary shelterfamilies arrived carrying mattresses, plastic bags and bundles of clothing. Other families sat on the sidewalks with their belongings; some men smoked while waiting for space to open up inside.
Volunteers weaved through the crowd, recording names as families filled classrooms and gathered in the schoolyard.
Hussein Abu Aliwho fled a southern Beirut suburb with his wife and children, described the moment of the attacks.
“My son started shaking and crying,” he said. “Where are you supposed to go? I went outside and then I came back in because I was afraid of the gunshots in the air. I gathered my children and went down to the street.”
Nadia Al-Salmandisplaced from the southern town of Majdal Zounsaid they left their homes “not out of fear or terror of the United States, but to fulfill our religious and legal duty to protect ourselves.”
“They do not intimidate us or frighten us, and they will not make us retreat even an inch from the path of resistance,” he added.
The minister of Lebanon Social Affairs, Hanin al-Sayedtold reporters that 171 shelters have been opened across the country, adding that they house 29,000 displaced people.
Hezbollah attacks Israel
Monday’s escalation also marked the first time in more than a year that Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for firing into Israel. The militant group said in a statement that the attacks were carried out in retaliation for the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and for “repeated Israeli aggression,” describing it as “a legitimate defensive response.”
But the Lebanese government said it considers Hezbollah’s military activities illegal and that the group must hand over their weapons. He prime minister Nawaf Salam declared, after a emergency cabinet meeting on Monday, that only the State should decide on matters of war and peace.
He added that from now on, Hezbollah’s military activities were prohibited and called on security agencies to prevent the launch of missiles or drones from Lebanon and arrest those responsible. It was the toughest stance the Lebanese government has taken so far against Hezbollah, which in addition to its armed militiamen also has a political party with a parliamentary bloc.
Salam also urged the international community to work to obtain from Israel a “clear and definitive commitment” to stop its attacks on Lebanon.
The Israeli military last night issued a warning for residents of around 50 communities in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate the area. The military spokesman, Brigadier General Effie Defrinsaid that Israel keeps “all options on the table,” including a possible ground invasion of Lebanon, and warned that “Hezbollah will pay a very high price.”
He claimed that Israel has called up more than 100,000 reservists since the war with Iran began on Saturday.
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