Israel Strikes Beirut, Gaza As Netanyahu Vows 'Heavy Price' For Hezbollah Attack On His Home

The Israeli forces said they struck the Hezbollah arms facilities in southern Beirut on Saturday with casualties still being assessed. The strikes came as health officials in Gaza said Israeli bombardments had killed at least 35 people and a siege around three hospitals had tightened.

The Israeli strikes are seen as retaliation to Hezbollah’s attempt to assassinate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a targeted drone attack near his holiday home in Caesarea, northern Israel.

Netanyahu was not there at the time, his spokesman said, and it was not immediately clear if the building was hit. But the prime minister said what he called an attempt to assassinate him and his wife was a “grave mistake”.

Israeli media outlet Channel 12 said in a post on social media site X on Saturday that Iran tried to eliminate Netanyahu, adding that an Israeli senior government official confirmed the involvement of Tehran.

Iran’s United Nations mission, however, said on Saturday that Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, armed and financed by Tehran, was behind a drone attack on the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Middle East On Boil After Sinwar’s Killing

Promises by Israel and its enemies Hamas and Hezbollah to keep fighting have chilled hopes that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on Wednesday might lead to truces in Gaza and Lebanon and prevent further escalation in the Middle East.

Israeli planes on Saturday dropped leaflets over southern Gaza with a picture of Sinwar and the message: “Hamas will no longer rule Gaza”.

In Beirut’s southern suburbs, Israel carried out heavy strikes on several locations, leaving thick plumes of smoke hanging over the city into the evening. The strikes targeted “several Hezbollah weapons storage facilities and a Hezbollah intelligence headquarters command centre”, Israel’s military said.

Israel had issued evacuation orders for four separate neighbourhoods within the suburbs, urging residents to get 500 metres (yards) away, but carried out strikes in other areas as well, witnesses said.

Tens of thousands of people have fled the southern suburbs – once a densely populated zone that also housed Hezbollah offices and underground installations – since Israel began regular strikes there about three weeks ago.

‘Assassination Attempt A Grave Mistake’: Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said he remains undeterred by the Hezbollah drone attack that targeted his home and warned Iranian proxies that they will pay a heavy price for targeting him and his wife.

“Anyone who tries to harm Israel’s citizens will pay a heavy price. We will continue to eliminate the terrorists and those who dispatch them. We will bring our hostages home from Gaza. And we will return our citizens who live on our Northern border safely to their homes,” Netanyahu wrote in an X post.

Israel is determined to achieve all our war objectives and change the security reality in our region for generations to come, he added.

Netanyahu’s office said the Israeli premier and his wife were not in Caesarea during the drone attack and “there were no injuries”. Earlier the military said a drone fired from Lebanon had “hit a structure” in the central Israeli town.

“A UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) was launched toward the prime minister’s residence in Caesarea. The prime minister and his wife were not at the location, and there were no injuries in the incident,” Netanyahu’s office said.