PHOTO- A man stands near a damaged building after an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, following renewed hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, Lebanon. Tens of thousands of the Shiite community have been displaced after Hezbollah entered the war in support of Iran .March 5, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Stringer
BEIRUT- The Israeli military warned residents to leave Beirut’s southern suburbs on Thursday, instructing them to move north and east of the Lebanese capital, the first time Israel has issued a warning covering entire neighborhoods in the Hezbollah-controlled area.
“Save your lives, evacuate your homes immediately,” Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on X, posting a map highlighting four neighborhoods of the southern suburbs – an area adjacent to Beirut airport.
Lebanon was pulled into the war in the Middle East on Monday, when Iran-backed Hezbollah opened fire, sparking intensified Israeli airstrikes largely focused in the southern suburbs, southern Lebanon and eastern Lebanon.
On Wednesday, the Israeli military ordered residents to leave a swathe of southern Lebanon – an area amounting to about 8% of Lebanon’s territory.
Tens of thousands of people, primarily from Shiite-populated areas in South Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley, are displaced and facing a severe housing crisis due to intense Israeli airstrikes, with many sleeping in cars or on the streets
While many found refuge in shelters, others are struggling with skyrocketing rents, overcrowded conditions, and, in some cases, rejection from other communities who are outraged at Hezbollah for entering the war
Reuters
