Four months after a ceasefire agreement halted the war between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel struck the southern suburb of Beirut on Friday in response to the firing of two rockets at northern Israel from south Lebanon earlier.
The Israeli army said it targeted a warehouse used by Hezbollah’s aerial unit 121 for storing drones in the capital’s southern suburb. Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on X that “ the terrorist Hezbollah is using civilians as human shields by placing military infrastructure among them” and that the “firing of rockets at the Upper Galile this morning constitutes a flagrant violation of the agreements between Israel and Lebanon.”
The spokesman added that Israel holds the Lebanese State responsible for the violations.
Since morning, Israel carried out 50 air strikes in south Lebanon. Later it served a warning for residents of a neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburb to evacuate the area in anticipation of a strike. Israel fired at least two rockets on a building in al-Jamous neighborhood in the southern suburb that was specified in an evacuation order issued by the Israeli army.
A Hezbollah source, quoted by several media, denied any involvement of the Iran-backed party in the rocket firing.
A wave of panic struck the residents of the capital’s southern suburb, a Hezbollah hotbed, especially that a building which was specifically mentioned in the Israeli evacuation order is located next to two schools.
A state of #confusion and panic prevails in the #Hadath area, south of #Beirut, due to the Israeli army's warning. The Lebanese Ministry of Education has issued a statement urging directors of all schools and universities in the southern suburb and the Hadath area to suspend… pic.twitter.com/GYwqjAsCP0
— This is Beirut (@ThisIsBeirut_) March 28, 2025
Earlier, Israel announced that it is "attacking Hezbollah targets” in south Lebanon. The strikes targeted the heights of Jezzine and Iqlim al-Touffah, as well as the outskirts of Kfarhouneh, in the Jezzine district, and Yohmor al-Shakif, Kfar Tebnit and Arnoun in Nabatieh. The Ministry of Health Emergency Operations department said that one person was killed and 18 others injured, including three children, in the raid on Kfar Tebnit.
Simultaneously, Israeli aircraft flew over the southern suburbs of Beirut, the western Bekaa, Bint Jbeil and Tyre at low altitude. Several public and private schools in the Tyre region closed their doors due to concerns over potential escalation in the area.
In the afternoon, the army announced that it had succeeded in “locating, in Qaaqaiyet el-Jisr, in Nabatiyeh, the site from which the rockets were launched north of the Litani”.
In a statement, it said it was continuing its investigation in order to “identify the perpetrators of the rocket firing” and to “take the necessary measures to control the situation on the border”.
“Military units deployed in various regions are also closely monitoring the intense movement of citizens”, according to the text, which thus refers to the panic that has gripped the population of southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburb, following the Israeli offensive.
Diplomatic Efforts
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam warned of the potential renewal of military operations on the southern border, and urged army Commander Gen. Rudolphe Haikal to take immediate action to identify those behind the irresponsible missile launches that threaten Lebanon's security and stability.
The National News Agency (NNA) reported that Salam called for "intensified efforts to identify the perpetrators, arrest them, and refer them to the competent judicial authorities." He emphasized "the necessity of preventing the repetition of such reckless acts, with a reminder of the need to complete the measures being taken by the Lebanese Army to ensure that weapons are held solely by the state."
Salam also made a series of calls to Arab and foreign leaders to exert maximum pressure on Israel to stop its attacks.
He also reiterated Lebanon’s full commitment to implementing Resolution 1701, to the arrangements for ceasing hostilities, and confirmed that the Lebanese Army alone is responsible for protecting the borders, while Lebanon’s government holds the sole authority to declare war or peace.
Two rockets were launched early Friday from southern Lebanon towards northern Israel, specifically towards the settlement of Kiryat Shmona.
The Israeli army reported intercepting one rocket, while the other fell within Lebanese territory. This incident marks the second such attack within a week, following a similar incident on March 22, when multiple rockets targeted the Israeli town of Metula.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that “the fate of Kiryat Shmona is the same as the fate of Beirut,” in an apparent threat to the Lebanese capital.
He said that without peace in Israel’s northern border communities, “there will be no peace in Beirut either.”
“The Lebanese government bears direct responsibility for any attacks on the Galilee,” he added, “We will ensure the security of the residents of the Galilee, and will act forcefully against any threat.”
Following the rocket fire, Israeli artillery targeted areas including Kfar Sir, the eastern outskirts of Qaaqaiyet el-Jisr, Yohmor and Taybeh.
Additionally, the Israeli military reportedly fired phosphorous shells toward the eastern outskirts of Khiyam, where an uninhabited house was set on fire
The Israeli military also conducted a sweep operation in Hamames, with heavy gunfire heard in nearby towns, while Israeli aircraft flew over villages in the western and central sectors, reaching the outskirts of Tyre.
Call for Restraint
The UN called on all parties “to exercise restraint”. “A return to wider conflict in Lebanon would be devastating for civilians on both sides” of the border ‘and must be avoided at all costs’. “It is absolutely necessary that all parties show restraint”, said the UN representative for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, in a statement.
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