BEIRUT (AP) — Israel carried out a series of massive airstrikes overnight in southern suburbs of Beirut and another that cut off the main border crossing between Lebanon and Syria, a main crossing point for tens of thousands of people fleeing Israeli bombardment.
The blasts in the Beirut suburbs sent huge plumes of smoke and flames into the night sky and shook buildings kilometers (miles) away in the Lebanese capital. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on what the intended target was, and there was no information immediately available on casualties. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported there were more than 10 consecutive airstrikes in the area.
The Israeli military said Friday that a strike in Beirut the day before killed Mohammed Rashid Skafi, the head of Hezbollah’s communications division. The military said in a statement that Skafi was “a senior Hezbollah terrorist who was responsible for the communications unit since 2000” and was “closely affiliated” with high-up Hezbollah officials.
Friday’s strike about 60 kilometers (37 miles) to the east along the Lebanon-Syria border led to the closure of the road near the busy Masnaa Border Crossing.
Associated Press video footage showed two huge craters on each side of the road. People disembarked cars unable to pass the site of the strike, carrying bags of their possessions as they crossed on foot.
Tens of thousands of people fleeing war in Lebanon have crossed into Syria over the past two weeks there.
The airstrike came a day after an Israeli military spokesperson said Hezbollah has been trying to transport military equipment through the border crossing.
Hezbollah is believed to have received much of its weaponry from Iran via Syria. The group has a presence on both sides of the border, a region where it has been fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces.
The new wave of strikes came after Israel warned people to evacuate communities in southern Lebanon that are outside a United Nations-declared buffer zone, as the yearlong conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah escalates.
Israel launched a ground incursion into Lebanon on Tuesday and its forces have been clashing with Hezbollah militants in a narrow strip along the border. A series of attacks before the incursion killed some of the group’s key members, including longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, arrived Friday in Beirut, where he was expected to discuss the war between Israel and Hezbollah with Lebanese officials.
Araghchi’s visit to Beirut came three days after Iran launched at least 180 missiles into Israel, the latest in a series of rapidly escalating attacks that threaten to push the Middle East closer to a regionwide war.
Iran is Hezbollah’s main backer and has sent weapons and billions of dollars to the group over the years.
In the Iranian capital, Tehran, the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led Friday prayers and delivered a speech where he praised the country’s recent missile strike on Israel and said Iran was prepared to conduct more strikes if needed.