Lebanon says ‘Israeli’ strikes hit hotel, residential building

• ‘Israeli’ airstrikes expanded into areas previously spared by the conflict, hitting a hotel in the predominantly Christian suburb of Hazmieh and residential buildings in Baalbek, Aramoun, and Saadiyat, resulting in at least 11 reported deaths and dozens of injuries.
• The strikes followed Hezbollah's claims of targeting the Haifa naval base and ‘Israeli’ troops with missile salvos in retaliation for the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei; meanwhile, the ‘Israeli’ military issued urgent evacuation orders for 29 villages in southern Lebanon ahead of further force.

‘Israeli’ strikes hit a Beirut hotel and residential complex in Lebanon's east, Lebanese state media said Wednesday, as ‘Israel’ announced broad strikes in response to Hezbollah missile and drone launches.

Lebanese state media said the ‘Israeli’ attacks targeted a building in Baalbek, in Lebanon's east far from the border, as well as a hotel in an area of Beirut so far spared from the violence.

In Aramoun and Saadiyat south of Beirut -- two towns outside the traditional strongholds of Iran-backed group Hezbollah -- the health ministry said ‘Israeli’ strikes killed six people and wounded eight others. It cautioned that this was a "preliminary toll".

The NNA said the strike on Aramoun hit a residential building. An AFP correspondent in the area saw rescuers getting people out.

It was not immediately clear what was targeted in these towns or in Baalbek, where Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) said five people were killed in a residential complex.

It added that 15 people were wounded and three more were still missing.

Responding to the attack, Baalbek's mayor said only civilians lived at the complex that hosts the building.

There was no immediate comment from the ‘Israeli’ military, which earlier announced "broad-scale strikes" against Hezbollah in Lebanon's south.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Ghebreyesus said among those killed in Lebanon were three paramedics, while another six people were wounded while recovering people who had been hurt by explosions.

Air raid sirens meanwhile sounded in parts of ‘Israel's’ north along the border.

"Several projectiles that crossed from Lebanon... were intercepted," an ‘Israeli’ military statement said, reporting no casualties.

Alerts were earlier activated in the border town of Metula, where Hezbollah said its fighters had targeted troops "with a missile salvo".

Hezbollah also said it had targeted northern ‘Israel's’ Haifa naval base on Tuesday in response to the ongoing ‘Israeli’ strikes, which began after an initial attack by Hezbollah in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during US ‘Israeli’ strikes on Saturday.

Early Wednesday, the ‘Israeli’ military called on people to leave 16 towns and villages in southern Lebanon, in an "urgent warning" before using force against Hezbollah fighters.

It later called on residents in a further 13 villages in Lebanon's south to evacuate.

‘Israel’ has carried out successive air raids on the south of the country as well as some suburbs of the capital Beirut where Hezbollah holds sway.

But according to the NNA, some of the attacks on Wednesday hit areas outside of Hezbollah's traditional strongholds.

The NNA said that "an Israeli air strike targeted a hotel in Hazmieh", in the first reported attack on the predominantly Christian area in Beirut's suburbs.

"Ambulances were dispatched to the scene," the report said.

‘Israeli’ strikes since Monday have killed at least 50 people in Lebanon, according to the health ministry.