Israel strikes central Beirut without warning after saying Iran ceasefire doesn't apply there

BEIRUT (AP) — Israeli strikes hit several dense commercial and residential areas in central Beirut Wednesday afternoon without warning, hours after a ceasefire was announced in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

Israel has said the agreement does not extend to its war with the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, although mediator Pakistan said it does.

Israel’s military called it the largest coordinated strike in the current war, striking more than 100 Hezbollah targets within 10 minutes in Beirut, southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa valley.

Black smoke towered over several parts of the seaside capital. Booms interrupted the honking of traffic on what had been a blue-sky afternoon. Ambulances raced toward open flames. At least one apartment building was struck. Emergency responders searched charred vehicles.

It was not immediately clear how many people were killed or wounded, but several strikes were in busy commercial locations, causing panic in the streets.

Israel's military said it had targeted missile launchers, command centers and intelligence infrastructure and accused Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields.

“The State of Lebanon and its civilians must refuse Hezbollah’s entrenchment in civilian areas and its weapons build-up capabilities,” the military said in a statement.

Israel has rarely struck central Beirut since the outbreak of the latest Israel-Hezbollah war on March 2 but has regularly struck southern and eastern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Before the wave of new strikes, a Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that the group was giving a chance for mediators to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon, but “we have not announced our adherence to the ceasefire since the Israelis are not adhering to it.” He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly.

The Hezbollah official said the group will not accept a return to the pre-March 2 status quo, when Israel carried out near-daily strikes in Lebanon despite a ceasefire being nominally in place since the last full-blown Israel-Hezbollah war ended in November 2024.

“We will not accept for the Israelis to continue behaving as they did before this war with regards to attacks,” he said. “We do not want this phase to continue.”

Hezbollah had fired missiles across the border days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, sparking a regional war. Israel responded with widespread bombardment of Lebanon and a ground invasion.

Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 1,530 people in Lebanon, including more than 100 women and 130 children. The Israeli military has said it has killed hundreds of Hezbollah fighters. More than one million people have been displaced in Lebanon.

Early Wednesday, after the ceasefire in Iran was announced, many displaced people sleeping in tents on the streets of Beirut and the coastal city of Sidon began packing their belongings in preparation to return to their homes.

That was before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the military would press on in Lebanon.

At a sprawling displacement camp on Beirut’s waterfront, families whiplashed by the conflicting statements expressed confusion and despair.

“We can’t take this anymore, sleeping in a tent, not showering, the uncertainty,” said Fadi Zaydan, 35. He and his parents had prepared to head back to the southern city of Nabatieh before Netanyahu's comments stopped them in their tracks.

“But we’ll be targeted if we go home," Zaydan said. His family decided to wait things out for now in Sidon, a bit closer to home.

Associated Press writer Isabel DeBre contributed.