Beirut — The Israeli military has unleashed a fresh wave of ferocious airstrikes on Lebanon’s capital, pounding southern Beirut and sending shockwaves across a city already battered by days of bombardment.

Shortly after midnight, residents in the Hezbollah‑stronghold district of Dahiyeh reported the sky “turning white” as formations of jets roared overhead, followed by a rolling series of explosions that shattered windows and plunged entire blocks into darkness. Video from the ground shows apartment façades ripped open, blazing cars in narrow streets and terrified families scrambling over debris with children in their arms.

The IDF says the new strikes targeted “a dense cluster of Hezbollah command centers, rocket depots and drone workshops embedded in civilian buildings,” claiming several mid‑level and senior operatives were killed. Israeli officials insist precision munitions were used and accuse the group of “using Beirut’s neighborhoods as human shields.”

Lebanon’s health ministry reports mounting casualties and warns hospitals are approaching breaking point, with emergency rooms overflowing and medical staff already exhausted by previous nights of attacks. Power cuts and damaged roads are hampering rescue efforts as civil defense teams dig through rubble in search of survivors.

Hezbollah has vowed a “direct and painful response,” hinting at deeper rocket salvos into northern and central Israel and framing the latest bombardment as part of “Israel’s wider war on behalf of the United States against Iran and the Resistance axis.”

Diplomats fear that with each new wave of strikes on densely populated Beirut, the fragile line between “targeted operations” and full‑scale urban warfare is disappearing — dragging Lebanon ever further into the heart of a regional conflict it can neither control nor contain.