US officials rush to shelter as air raid sirens blare in Tel Aviv
A little earlier, we reported sirens were sounding in central Israel after projectiles were launched from Lebanon.
Israel now says it has shot down two rockets that set off air raid alerts in Tel Aviv – as US secretary of state Antony Blinken was on a visit to the city.
Some senior state department officials and journalists at his hotel rushed from its breakfast hall to a shelter downstairs.
There were no immediate reports of injuries in the attack.
‘Like judgement day’: Aftermath of deadly Israeli strike near Beirut hospital
Rescuers were still removing debris late yesterday after an Israeli airstrike hit Beirut across the street from the capital’s main public hospital, killing at least 18 people.
Residents who survived the massive explosion were still in shock, some searching through the debris with their hands for their relatives or their belongings.
The Lebanese Civil Defence said five buildings were destroyed and 12 sustained severe damage.
Hussein al-Ali, a nurse in the Rafik Hariri Hospital opposite, said: “We were terrified. This is a crime. It felt like judgement day.”
Director of the hospital Jihad Saadeh said the strike broke several glass windows and the solar panels of the medical facility.
Mr Saadeh said the hospital received no warning of the attack, nor did the residents of the slum area.
Ola Eid was playing with her neighbor’s children when the first explosion hit, knocking her to the floor.
She said she stood up to find her neighbor’s child soaked in blood. One was killed immediately; the other remains in intensive care.
“I looked ahead and saw the kids torn apart and hurt,” she said.
The Israeli military said it struck a Hezbollah target, without elaborating.
Israeli military to attack Tyre
An Israeli military spokesperson says it will attack the Tyre area in Lebanon – the country’s fifth largest city.
Avichay Adraee published a map on X showing dozens of buildings highlighted in red and ordering their residents to evacuate.
In Arabic, he wrote: “You must immediately move out of the area marked in red and head north of the Awali River.
“Anyone present near Hezbollah elements, installations and combat equipment is putting his life in danger.”
Tyre is located on the Mediterranean coast of southern Lebanon, roughly 12 miles north of the border with Israel.
Sirens in Israel as Iraqi group launches drones
Sirens have sounded in central and northern Israel after projectiles were launched from Lebanon, according to the Israeli military.
Separately, the IDF said it intercepted two drones launched from the east that crossed into Israel’s waters in the area of Eilat this morning.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said it attacked Israel’s port city of Eilat with drones twice.
The pro-Iranian militant group added that it struck “vital” targets there.
Good morning
Welcome back as we resume our coverage of the conflicts in the Middle East, where US secretary of state Antony Blinken is continuing another tour in the hopes of reigniting stuttering ceasefire talks.
Mr Blinken is scheduled to visit Saudi Arabia today after sitting down for lengthy talks with Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday in Jerusalem.
Nearly a week on from the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza, the secretary of state urged the Israeli leader to capitalise on his death by securing the release of the remaining hostages and ending the war.
Mr Blinken is also seeking ways to defuse the conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, where at least 18 people were killed and 60 wounded by an Israeli airstrike overnight on Monday.
Lebanon’s health ministry says at least 2,530 people in the country have been killed during a year of conflict, while the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says 42,718 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s offensive.
We’re pausing our coverage
That brings an end to our live coverage of the conflicts in the Middle East for this evening.
Before we go, here’s a recap of the day’s key developments:
- At least 18 people, including four children, were killed and 60 injured in an Israeli airstrike near Rafik Hariri University Hospital, Beirut’s main state hospital, overnight.
- The Israeli military said it had struck a Hezbollah target, without giving more detail, and said it had not been targeting the hospital itself.
- Israel’s military confirmed the killing of top Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine, who had been widely expected to be the militant group’s next leader. He was killed in an airstrike in southern Lebanon earlier this month – but his death had not been confirmed until this evening;
- US secretary of state Antony Blinken sat down for talks with Benjamin Netanyahu lasting more than two hours today, as he embarked on his 11th tour of the Middle East in the hopes of reviving ceasefire efforts;
- Mr Blinken told Mr Netanyahu to seize on Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar last week to bring the conflict to an end, while the Israeli prime minister called for security and political change in Lebanon that would allow displaced Israeli citizens to return to their homes in the north;
- Meanwhile, the IDF said an Israeli deputy commander had been killed in battle in southern Lebanon;
- The FBI said it was investigating the leaking of two highly classified intelligence documents describing Israel’s preparations for a retaliatory strike on Iran.
Middle East humanitarian appeal by UK charities raises £15m in five days
A humanitarian appeal to address the “overwhelming” need in Gaza, Lebanon and the wider Middle East has raised £15m in the first five days.
Fifteen charities making up the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launched the appeal to raise urgent funds for the millions in the region requiring food, water, shelter and medical care after fleeing their homes in search of safety.
The UK government said it would match the first £10m of donations from the public.
DEC chief executive Saleh Saeed said charities were “scaling up their responses” across the region “knowing they have the support of the British public to do all they can to help and reach as many of those in need as possible”.
Rebuilding Gaza could take 350 years, UN report warns
It could take 350 years to rebuild Gaza’s economy if it remains under a blockade, a UN report has warned.
The organisation has previously estimated that rebuilding Gaza fully after the Israel-Hamas conflict could drag on for decades, but a new report from the UN’s trade and development wing now speaks in terms of centuries.
The war has caused staggering destruction across the territory, with entire neighborhoods obliterated and roads and critical infrastructure in ruins.
Decomposing bodies, mountains of rubble, and unexploded ordnance would have to be cleared before rebuilding could begin.
The report says if the war ended tomorrow and the region returned to the status quo prior to Hamas’s 7 October attacks, it could take 350 years for its economy to return to its already shaky pre-war level.
Gaza’s economy had been impacted by an Israeli and Egyptian blockade imposed after Hamas seized power in 2007, four previous wars and divisions between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.
“Once a ceasefire is reached, a return to the pre-October 2023 status quo would not put Gaza on the path needed for recovery and sustainable development,” the UN report said.
“If the 2007- 2022 growth trend returns, with an average growth rate of 0.4%, it will take Gaza 350 years just to restore the GDP levels of 2022.”
Report author Rami Alazzeh clarified that the figure was more of a calculation than a prediction.
Israel has not commented on the report.
Inside the Beirut hospital Israel claims Hezbollah is using to store cash
Israel has claimed Hezbollah is storing gold and cash in a bunker under Al-Sahel Hospital in Beirut.
Our international correspondent Alex Rossi visited the basement of the hospital and spoke to emergency doctor Omar Mneimne, who called the allegations “wholly un-based”.
“It’s important the truth about this hospital comes out before anything happens,” said Dr Omar.
You can watch Alex Rossi’s report here:
Smokes rises over Beirut after fresh Israeli strike
Smoke is billowing from an area of Beirut after what appears to be a new Israeli strike on the Lebanese capital tonight.
The city’s southern suburbs have been targeted repeatedly by the Israeli military since a recent eruption in hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
An Israeli airstrike late last night in Beirut destroyed several buildings near Lebanon’s largest public hospital, killing at least 18 people and injuring 60 others. Israel said it struck a Hezbollah target and had not been targeting the hospital itself.