At least five people have been killed and 15 others injured following an Israeli airstrike on a residential complex in Baalbek, Lebanon.
Operative Information Center-OMM reports, citing the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA), that the strike targeted a housing block in the city located northeast of Beirut. Search and rescue operations involving various emergency services are currently underway at the scene to locate survivors beneath the rubble.
The Mayor of Baalbek emphasized that the targeted complex was inhabited exclusively by civilian families. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, the intensity of the conflict has escalated significantly, with reports indicating that between the morning of March 2 and the evening of March 3, Israeli strikes resulted in 50 deaths and 335 injuries across the country. Al Jazeera further reported that the Israeli military issued urgent evacuation orders on March 4 for residents of 16 villages in southern Lebanon. Additionally, Israeli forces reportedly targeted the Al-Hazmiyeh road and a hotel near Baalbek. In response, Hezbollah announced a rocket attack on March 4 targeting Israeli troop concentrations near the town of Metula in northern Israel.
The city of Baalbek, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its ancient Roman temple complex, has increasingly become a focal point of military activity in the region. The escalation comes amid broader regional tensions that have seen frequent cross-border fire between the Israeli military and Hezbollah forces. International observers have repeatedly expressed concern over the rising civilian death toll and the potential for the conflict to expand into a full-scale regional war, calling for increased diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the situation along the Blue Line.
