Lebanon orders hospital evacuations in Southern Suburb of Beirut
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The evacuation comes after unprecedented Israeli airstrikes overnight, marking the most intense bombardment since the 2006 July War..
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Ambulances surrounded by a crowd of people outside a Beirut hospital, in the aftermath of the electronic attacks. (AFP)
Lebanon's Health Ministry announced plans on Saturday to evacuate hospitals in southern Beirut as Israeli airstrikes intensify in the area.
In a statement, the ministry urged hospitals in Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and other unaffected regions to suspend non-urgent cases until the end of the week in order to accommodate patients from the southern suburbs.
The move signals grave concerns that "Israel" may target hospitals in Lebanon, following its documented violations of international law in Gaza where medical facilities have recurrently been bombed. This fear is compounded by the recent escalation of airstrikes in southern Beirut, raising alarms about the safety of civilian infrastructure and medical institutions.
IOF launch fire belts across parts of southern Beirut suburbs
On Saturday morning, Al Mayadeen's cameras captured extensive footage of the destruction to residential buildings and infrastructure in Beirut's southern suburbs, following a series of brutal Israeli airstrikes.
The Israeli military renewed a series of intense airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs overnight, destroying residential buildings and igniting widespread fires, according to Al Mayadeen's correspondent.
Israeli warplanes carried out more than 30 airstrikes overnight Friday, targeting buildings in the areas of Burj Al-Barajneh, Kafaat, Choueifat, Hadath, Al-Laylaki, and Mreijeh. Additionally, the airstrikes hit a house in the Jamous area of the southern suburbs of Beirut, according to our correspondent.
The Israeli airstrikes caused fires and massive destruction in several sites and buildings in the southern suburbs, leading to a wave of forcible displacement.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent also reported that the Israeli bombardment created what resembled "fire belts" in parts of the southern suburbs.
Furthermore, a fire broke out as a result of a strike on a fuel station in the Cocodi area, as reported by our correspondent.
Despite the extensive Israeli attacks on the Lebanese capital, air traffic at Beirut Airport continued uninterrupted.
Hezbollah rejected the claims of storing weapons among civilians
It is worth noting that the Israeli occupation's spokesperson had made an announcement that airstrikes would target Beirut's suburbs, condemning residents to forced displacement. Additionally, the targeted region continues to house thousands of Lebanese people as these attacks have remained unprecedented since 2006 when "Israel" invoked the Dahiye Doctrine, targeting residential areas in the region.
The occupation forces' statement claimed that Hezbollah was hiding weapons amongst civilian homes, but the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon released a statement denying any such claims. Hezbollah's media office issued a statement noting it "denies the Israeli occupation's false claims about the presence of weapons or weapons stores in the civilian buildings it targeted in the southern suburbs of Beirut at dawn on Saturday."
Moreover, Al Mayadeen's correspondent confirmed that there was no military activity in the areas targeted by the occupation, stressing that all the targets hit by the bombing were civilian and included residential buildings, in addition to the Ghandour factory for food industries.
It is worth noting that "Israel" launched a series of airstrikes in a brutal attack on the Haret Hreik area of the southern suburbs on Friday afternoon, leveling six residential buildings. This attack led to the killing of six people and injured 91 others, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health's preliminary toll.
Read more: Despite extensive strikes, Hezbollah rockets pound Israeli settlements
