Baalbek, Lebanon — Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley has been thrust into the Iran war’s front line after a fresh wave of Israeli airstrikes tore through Baalbek, hours after the devastating bombing of Hezbollah-linked sites in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Residents reported the night sky suddenly lighting up as jets roared overhead, followed by a string of explosions that rocked the ancient city and surrounding villages. Precision munitions slammed into what the IDF calls “high‑value Hezbollah infrastructure” — weapons depots, training camps and suspected command centers believed to be channeling rockets and drones into Israel at Iran’s direction.

Footage from the ground shows warehouse complexes engulfed in flames, shattered homes on the city’s outskirts and panicked families fleeing toward the main highway. Lebanese medical officials speak of dozens of casualties, warning the toll could rise as rescue teams struggle to reach remote impact sites.

In Tel Aviv, Israeli spokespeople frame the Baalbek raids as a direct extension of their campaign against Iran’s regional network: “After Beirut, every Hezbollah stronghold tied to Tehran’s war plans is a legitimate target,” one official said. Hezbollah has vowed to answer with “painful strikes deep inside occupied territory,” hinting at new barrages on northern and central Israel.

Lebanon’s fragile government, already reeling from economic collapse and internal unrest, has condemned the strikes as a “dangerous escalation that risks dragging our entire territory into Iran’s war.” Analysts warn that by hitting Baalbek — Hezbollah’s historic heartland — Israel has signaled that no rear base is off‑limits, pushing the conflict closer to a full‑scale Lebanon front layered on top of the broader Iran showdown.