Israel says it hit 100 Hezbollah rocket launchers in Lebanon
Israel says it hit 100 Hezbollah rocket launchers in Lebanon
Witness in Beirut: 'I saw people without hands, without eyes'
I saw people without hands, without eyes," Sara Rammal, who now lives in Beirut, tells the BBC.
She was forced to leave her home in southern Lebanon shortly after Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October and is unsure when she'll be able to return, with Israeli strikes on Hezbollah targets in the region.
Rammal further describes what she witnessed in Beirut: "I saw a father carrying his seven-year-old kid bleeding with his hand cut off. He was rushing him to the hospital."
She says she knows healthcare workers who died "because their pagers were tampered with by Israel".
Israel hasn't claimed responsibility for the attacks
Lebanese economy 'deeply affected' by attacks, says minister
Lebanon's Minister for Economy and Trade says this week's "really outrageous" attacks have "deeply affected" the country's economy.
It's been a “very intense week for Lebanon on all fronts,” Amin Salam tells the BBC World Service Newsday programme.
The local economy has already been suffering for “quite a while with one issue after another," he says, adding the pager and walkie-talkie explosions “add another layer” that “stops growth, stops any flow of cash related to investment, stops any visits to Lebanon from tourists”.
On foreign investment, Salam says it is "very difficult to give comfort and assurance, especially when investment requires stability and security".
'It's like if we were inside a horror movie
The BBC World Service Newsday programme has been sent a voice message from a listener in Lebanon.
"It's like if we were inside a horror movie, a long terrifying dream," they say, adding Lebanese citizens have become "hostages".
The listener says people "do not have the means to survive, neither materially or morally", and Lebanese politicians "have failed us".
"Everyone should know that the Lebanese people want peace. [We] do not want war, no-one, nobody wants war," they add.
"Please, we ask the international communities, we ask the Arab world, to help us to implement the international resolutions."
Evacuated Israeli resident says her home was hit by a Hezbollah rocket
An Israeli resident who was evacuated from the country's border with Lebanon 11 months ago says she doesn't know when she'll be able to return home.
Ortal Be'eri says Hezbollah started attacks on 7 October - the same day Hamas crossed the Gaza border and attacked Israel - and she left her home that evening.
Be'eri says her home was left "broken" three months ago after a rocket hit close to it - and currently lives with her partner and two children, aged nine and 10, in a hotel.
"It's hard for me to see them and me going back home where the situation is continuing," she tells BBC, saying her children "know what it feels like to have sirens and to hear rockets fall around you".
Pagers that exploded in Lebanon not made in Bulgaria, says security agency
Bulgaria's state security agency DANS says none of the pagers that exploded during Tuesday's bomb attacks in Lebanon were imported to, exported from, or made in Bulgaria.
This latest development comes after Bulgarian authorities yesterday opened an investigation into one company's possible link to the sale of pagers to Hezbollah.
Local media reports said a company there had facilitated the sale of the pagers to Hezbollah, according to the news agency Reuters. Citing security sources, national broadcaster bTV reported, that 1.6 million euros related to the transaction passed through Bulgaria, and was sent to Hungary. Reuters adds it could not immediately confirm the claim.
On Tuesday, pager attacks started in Lebanon at around 15:30 local time (13:00 BST), with explosions continuing for about an hour after the initial blasts
Beirut resident says 'they should have seen it coming
I've been speaking to residents here in Beirut about the two days of device attacks.
Some are disgusted, while others say the attacks are to be expected given heightened tensions in the region.
One person accuses the Israeli government of "constantly not caring about the civilian lives".
While another says "they should have seen it coming", accusing the Israeli military of planning such attacks.
Israel has not said it was behind the blasts on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Hezbollah leader calls device attacks 'declaration of war
"The enemy crossed all rules, laws and red lines. It didn't care about anything at all, not morally, not humanely, not legally."
That's how Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah described the recent attacks across Lebanon in a televised address yesterday.
He said the bomb attacks using pagers and walkie-talkies were an "unprecedented blow", but vowed that Hezbollah would continue fighting and inflict a "just punishment".
Nasrallah added they were a "major aggression against Lebanon" that can be called "war crimes or a declaration of war".
During his speech on Thursday, Israeli warplanes flew low over Beirut causing sonic booms across the capital.
Hours later, Israel says it launched fresh air strikes in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah positions.
For context Hezbollah has blamed its adversary, Israel for the device explosions. Israeli officials have so far declined to comment
Surgeries continue to 'cater for high casualty numbers'
We've been hearing more from Lebanon about what hospitals are experiencing after the device explosions on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Chief nursing officer Hisham Bawadi says the medical centre he works at in Beirut received a "tsunami of patients" after the explosions.
"Most of the injuries were facial with mainly the eyes, the face affected, the upper extremities, and some injuries on the abdomen," he tells the BBC World Service's Newsday programme.
Bawadi says there are planned surgeries today and over the weekend to "be able to cater for the high number of casualties".
"No single hospital or group of hospitals can cater for this large number of casualties, so every healthcare worker in Lebanon has to pitch in to be able to serve the injured people.
Lebanese surgeon 'became robotic' amid influx of patients
Lebanese surgeon Elias Jaradeh described the sheer volume of severe wounds from two days of exploding device attacks in the country.
Dr Jaradeh, who was working at a specialist eye and ear hospital, said he treated women and children but most of the patients he saw were young men. The surgeon said a large proportion were “severely injured” and many had lost the sight in both eyes.
Those killed and injured included fighters from Hezbollah, members of their families and bystanders.
The bomb attacks – which killed 37 people including two children – have been widely blamed on Israel, which has not claimed responsibility.
Dr Jaradeh said it had taken a toll on the medical teams, himself included.
You have to dissociate yourself. More or less, you are robotic. This is the way you have to behave, but inside, you are deeply injured. You are seeing the nation injured."
Everyone is tense, says reporter in Beirut
A reporter at L’Orient Today in Beirut says the situation in the Lebanese capital is “very precarious" and "everyone is tense".
"What they saw on Tuesday and Wednesday is very traumatic," Sally Abou Aljoud tells the BBC Radio 4 Today programme, adding there's a "big sense of unease in the city and across the country”.
She says people are going to work and school and "trying to bring a sense of normality but really nothing is normal", and goes on to describe "barely anyone" on the streets and that people are scared to use their electronic devices
Israeli military plans 'training activity' in northern Israel
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) says it will carry out "activities in the training areas" in northern Israel at the weekend and said entering the areas is "prohibited".
In a post on X, the IDF adds "gunshots and explosions" may be heard in nearby settlements
IDF says overnight strikes aimed at 'degrading' Hezbollah's capabilities
As we've been reporting, the Israel Defense Forces says it hit Hezbollah targets in Lebanon overnight to "degrade" the group's "capabilities and infrastructure".
"For decades, Hezbollah has weaponized civilian homes, dug tunnels beneath them and used civilians as human shields," the IDF said in a post on X, as the strikes were being carried out.
"The IDF is operating to bring security to northern Israel in order to enable the return of residents to their homes and achieve war goals," it added.
Later, the military said its air force struck approximately 30 Hezbollah launchers and infrastructure sites, containing approximately 150 launcher barrels, as well as "infrastructure and a weapons storage facility in multiple areas in southern Lebanon
Components in exploding pagers not from Taiwan, says minister
Taiwan’s government says Taiwan is not the source of components used in the thousands of pagers that exploded in Lebanon on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters outside Taiwan’s parliament, Economy Minister Kuo Jyh-huei said: "The components are low-end IC (integrated circuits) and batteries, I can say with certainty they were not made in Taiwan."
Meanwhile Taipei investigators are continuing to question the founder of pager maker Apollo Gold, whose company logo was found on the back of some of the devises that exploded in Lebanon.
Hsu Ching-Guang spent most of Thursday being questioned as a witness. He has insisted from the start that his company did not make the pagers, and that he had signed an agreement with a company based in Hungary called BAC Consulting to use his company logo.
On Thursday investigators searched an office space in the Taipei suburb which was registered under the name Apollo Holdings. It also questioned a woman called Teresa Wu, who is believed to be the sole employee of Apollo Holdings.
Hsu Ching-Gang, the boss of Apollo Gold, had earlier told reporters that his sole contact with BAC Consulting was a woman named Teresa
Recap What's happened in recent days
The extensive Israeli air strikes come after two days of deadly explosions across Lebanon.
Here's a quick recap:
On Tuesday, pagers exploded simultaneously across the country and on Wednesday, walkie-talkies exploded across Lebanon, with local authorities saying at least 37 people had been killed and thousands wounded from the two attacks
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the explosions
Yesterday, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said it was embarking on a "new phase of the war", concentrating its efforts on the north
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah blamed Israel for the attacks and said it had "crossed all red lines", vowing to inflict a "just punishment"
During Nasrallah's televised address, Israeli warplanes flew over Beirut, causing sonic booms and shortly after, Israel launched fresh strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
International leaders have warned both sides against an escalation
IDF strikes in Lebanon came hours after Hezbollah leader's speech
The Israeli airstrikes, which lasted more than two hours, were some of the most intense of this conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.
They were concentrated in areas across southern Lebanon, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.
This is a region that is largely empty, as tens of thousands of residents have left because of the violence along the border.
The bombardments came just hours after a much-anticipated speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in which he vowed to punish Israel for attacks targeting the group’s pagers and walkie-talkies.
At least 37 people were killed and more than 3,000 wounded in the explosions that sparked chaos and panic across Lebanon, and raised fears of a wider war.
It was a humiliation for the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, and Nasrallah acknowledged that the group had suffered a massive and unprecedented blow.
Hezbollah is in a difficult position. It knows that any strong reaction is likely to spark a major war with Israel, which could be destructive not only for the group but also for Lebanon.
At the same time, it is not in Iran’s interest to have a damaged Hezbollah, as the group acts as part of its deterrence against Israel.
But given the scale and the impact of what happened, it needs to be seen as giving a significant response
Israel Defense Forces says 'hundreds' of Hezbollah targets hit overnight
We're re-starting our live coverage this morning, with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announcing it has struck "hundreds" of targets in Lebanon overnight.
This included attacks on launchers and additional military infrastructure, according to the IDF.
"Hezbollah feels that it is being persecuted and the sequence of military actions will continue," Israel's minister of defence said yesterday.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah blamed Israel for the pager and walkie-talkie attacks that happened on Tuesday and Wednesday, saying yesterday it had crossed all "red lines". Israel has not claimed responsibility.
The White House has said it's concerned about a potential escalation in the Middle East and the United Nations is expected to discuss the crisis today
What's the latest?
Over the last few hours, we've been bringing you updates after Israel began carrying out strikes across southern Lebanon, while the leader of Hezbollah vowed the group would respond to this week's exploding device attacks. Here's what happened today:
- Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah blamed Israel for the attacks - which killed 37 people - saying they crossed all "red lines". Israel has not claimed responsibility
- As Nasrallah started speaking, Israeli jets could be heard flying over Beirut. Israel then confirmed it had launched strikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
- Stories of hospital staff working around the clock to treat those injured in the device attacks continue to come in, with one doctor telling the BBC he had to act "robotic" just to be able to keep working
- The head of the World Health Organisation said the mass explosions "seriously disrupted" Lebanon's "fragile health sector"
- Western diplomats are urging against a widening of conflict - the White House said a ceasefire deal in the Middle East is "achievable", and the UK's foreign secretary, David Lammy, called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah
We're pausing our live coverage now, but you
'They're going to strike': Panic outside hospital in Beirut as Israeli jets flew overhead
When Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s speech began, almost everyone sitting outside the American hospital in downtown Beirut started watching on their phones.
There are many who have relatives or friends being treated for injures caused by exploding pagers. Most looked exhausted, but they watched Nasrallah's speech carefully.
“I can sacrifice myself for him. He is our leader," Maryam, from Dahieh, told me. Her husband, a Hezbollah member, lost his right hand and both eyes when his pager exploded.
A few minutes after the speech started, we heard a warplane overhead. Israeli jets were flying low over downtown Beirut.
“They are going to strike,” a man shouted, and everyone looked up. Soon after we hear four loud booms – Israeli jets have broken the sound barrier overhead.
“They want to scare us but they can’t,” a young supporter of Hezbollah said. But the panic was visible on some people's faces.
A man, 62, whose son, a doctor, was injured as he had a pager while working at a hospital managed by Hezbollah, told me: “We are not in a position that expects anything from our leader. Whatever he decides is for the benefit of our people, and we will support it.”
He added: “We are not Hezbollah members. My son was not Hezbollah member, but we are supporters of the resistance and will stay that way no matter what".
But there are concerns among many Lebanese that the country is going towards a war - a war that in some people’s eyes only Hezbollah will be responsible for.
Surgeon 'became robotic' to treat sheer volume of wounded Lebanese
A Lebanese surgeon has described how the sheer volume of severe wounds from two days of exploding device attacks forced him to act "robotic" just to be able to keep working.
Surgeon Elias Jaradeh said he treated women and children but most of the patients he saw were young men. The surgeon said a large proportion were “severely injured” and many had lost the sight in both eyes.
The dead and injured in Lebanon include fighters from Hezbollah, but members of their families have also been killed or wounded, along with innocent bystanders. Dr Jaradeh described the wounded he treated as looking "mostly civilian".
Dr Jaradeh, who is also an MP for the Change parliamentary bloc, was working at a specialist eye and ear hospital where some of the most severely wounded people were sent. He said it had taken a toll on the medical teams, himself included.
"It's very hard," the surgeon said. "You have to dissociate yourself. More or less, you are robotic. This is the way you have to behave, but inside, you are deeply injured. You are seeing the nation injured."
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Israel has carried out extensive air strikes on southern Lebanon targeting positions of the Iranian-backed group, Hezbollah
The military says its warplanes struck more than 100 rocket launchers, as well as a weapons depot
This comes as Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says "we are at the start of a new phase of the war"
The Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has vowed to inflict retribution after explosions of communication devices used by the group killed more than 30 people and injured thousands
Bulgaria's state security agency DANS says none of the pagers that exploded in Lebanon on Tuesday were imported to, exported from or made in Bulgaria
The White House has said it is concerned about a potential escalation in the Middle East. The UN Security Council will discuss the crisis later on Friday
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