Israel Pounds Beirut Southern Suburbs with Airstrikes

Smoke rises from a destroyed building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Smoke rises from a destroyed building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
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Israel Pounds Beirut Southern Suburbs with Airstrikes

Smoke rises from a destroyed building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Smoke rises from a destroyed building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Israel’s air force resumed airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, destroying buildings in several neighborhoods, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said Friday. There was no immediate word on casualties.

The early Friday airstrikes on Dahiyeh — after a four-day lull during which no airstrikes were reported in the suburbs — destroyed dozens of buildings and caused fires in the area, the agency said.

In recent days, Israel has intensified its airstrikes on the northeastern city of Baalbek and nearby villages, as well as different parts of southern Lebanon.

Early Friday, an Israeli airstrike on the edge of Qamatiyeh, southeast of Beirut, killed three people and wounded five, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.
An Associated Press journalist who visited the scene said the strike was closer to the nearby village of Ein al-Rummaneh, adding that it caused minor damage to an apartment on the first floor of a building.

The Ministry said more than 2,800 people have been killed and 13,000 wounded since Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah began firing rockets almost daily into Israel, drawing retaliation.



Delayed Gaza Polio Vaccinations to Resume on Saturday, Agencies Say

A Palestinian child cries during a polio vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, September 3, 2024. REUTERS/Hussam Al-Masri
A Palestinian child cries during a polio vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, September 3, 2024. REUTERS/Hussam Al-Masri
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Delayed Gaza Polio Vaccinations to Resume on Saturday, Agencies Say

A Palestinian child cries during a polio vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, September 3, 2024. REUTERS/Hussam Al-Masri
A Palestinian child cries during a polio vaccination campaign, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, September 3, 2024. REUTERS/Hussam Al-Masri

The third phase of a delayed polio vaccination campaign in Gaza will begin on Saturday, aid organizations said on Friday, after the rollout was derailed by Israeli bombardments, mass displacement and lack of access.

The polio campaign began on Sept. 1 after the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed in August that a baby was partially paralysed by the type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years, according to Reuters.

"The humanitarian pause necessary to conduct the campaign has been assured; however, the area of the pause has been substantially reduced compared to the first round of vaccination in northern Gaza, conducted in September 2024. It is now limited to just Gaza City," said a joint statement by UNICEF and the WHO.

The final phase of the campaign had aimed to reach an estimated 119,000 children under 10 years old in northern Gaza with a second dose of novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2). However, achieving this target is now unlikely due to access constraints, the statement said.