Israel attacks the center of the Lebanese capital in an escalating military campaign that has killed almost 700 people.
Posted on March 12, 2026
Israel has carried out a new wave of attacks on the Lebanese capital Beirut, causing huge plumes of black smoke to rise over parts of the city.
The latest Israeli attacks on Thursday targeted the Bashoura neighborhood in central Beirut as well as the southern suburbs.
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The Israeli military also issued a warning to evacuate a building in Zuqaq al-Blat, another area of the city center.
The attack on central Beirut marks an escalation in a week and a half of intense Israeli bombing across Lebanon, which has killed at least 687 people and wounded more than 1,500, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
Lebanese authorities said more than 800,000 people have been forcibly displaced due to the violence, which began on March 2 after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israeli territory following the start of the US-Israel war against Iran.
The Israeli military has launched a widespread air and ground attack on its northern neighbor, describing the offensive as a campaign against Hezbollah.
The Lebanese armed group responded with waves of rocket attacks against Israel, including a large salvo launched Wednesday night in coordination with Iran.
The United Nations and humanitarian groups said Lebanese civilians – including hundreds of thousands who have sought emergency shelter after being forced from their homes – are bearing the brunt of the escalating conflict.
Many of those forced to flee southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut, an area known as Dahiyeh, have stayed in schools converted into shelters, with relatives or in tents along the coast.
At least 12 people were killed in a double Israeli attack on Thursday in the coastal area of Ramlet al-Baida, where displaced families were sleeping in tents.
Al Jazeera’s Bernard Smith said 90 percent of government shelters in Lebanon are full.
“The people who are in those shelters have already seen their houses blown up, particularly those in the southern suburbs (of Beirut) and southern Lebanon, so they have no homes to return to,” Smith reported from the capital.
“Many people are day laborers (and) they can’t earn any wages. So people are without money, without a home to return to, and this campaign by Israel and this fight between Israel and Hezbollah shows no signs of ending anytime soon.”
