Death toll from Israel attack on Beirut rises to 45: Lebanon health ministry

“The number of dead has risen to 45 people,” a ministry statement said, updating an earlier toll of 37 from the Friday attack.

It added “work continues to remove the rubble for the third day in a row” and that DNA sampling would be used to determine the identities of some of the bodies.

The Lebanese news agency reported that the targeted building was hit by four rockets, causing the collapse of neighboring structures as well.

The Israeli army announced that the strike also resulted in the assassination of a prominent Hezbollah military leader, Ibrahim Aqil, along with other senior commanders.

Hezbollah confirmed that at least 16 of its members, including senior leader Ibrahim Aqil and top commander Ahmed Wahbi, were killed in the Israeli raid.

This strike marked the third Israeli attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs, Hezbollah’s stronghold in Lebanon, amid ongoing exchanges of fire over the past year.

Previous notable assassinations include Hamas political bureau deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri in January and Hezbollah leader Fouad Shukr in July.

The attack occurred against the backdrop of a “new wave” of Israeli escalation in Lebanon, as Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Thursday the war with Hezbollah has entered a “new phase”.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 41,400 people, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.