Massive Israeli Assault on Lebanon Threatens U.S.-Iran Ceasefire
Lylla Younes | Over 250 people were killed in what the Israeli military said was the “largest coordinated strike” on Lebanon since March 2. | BEIRUT, Lebanon—At 2:15 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, Dalia, 38, was at a gym down the street from her home in the Karakas neighborhood in central Beirut when a series of massive airstrikes rocked the city. ■ One of the strikes hit just up the street, along the stretch of road between her apartment and the gym—a route she walks every day. The blast was so forceful it shook the building and left her ears ringing for hours. Her first thought was her daughter, who was at a basketball court across the street. When Dalia ran outside, she immediately saw thick smoke rising in the air. She sprinted to the court and found her daughter crying alongside other children. “All the children were traumatized,” she said. ■ The strikes were part of a sweeping Israeli aerial bombardment campaign across Lebanon on Wednesday that came just hours after a U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement was announced by President Donald Trump. In a span of 10 minutes, Israel hit over 100 targets across the country, including many in densely populated neighborhoods of Beirut and its southern suburbs. ■ According to Lebanon’s Civil Defense, at least 254 people were killed and over 1,100 wounded in the attacks. The vast majority of the casualties were in the capital and its southern suburbs, with over 150 killed.