Israel has unleashed a missile on a medical centre near the British embassy in Lebanon.
A number of buildings were engulfed in flames after the strike in Bachoura area, marking the second time Israel has struck central Beirut this week.
At least two people were killed and 11 others wounded, according to a provisional report from the Ministry of Health.
The death toll later jumped to five, but it is expected to continue to rise as more bodies are unearthed from the rubble.
Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV station said the strike targeted a centre of the group’s health unit.
Footage shows people rushing to the scene and combing through the rubble for survivors.
The building is located less than a mile from the British embassy in the Lebanese capital and the same distance from the historic Mohammad Al Amin Mosque.
The IDF also struck the Dahieh area of Beirut, in the southern suburbs, where it has been carrying out attacks for the past 11 days.
The Lebanese health ministry said late Wednesday that 46 people were killed and 85 others injured by ‘enemy Israeli strikes’ across the country over the past 24 hours.
The Israeli army’s Arabic-speaking spokesperson, Avichai Adraee, reported on X that the army carried out a ‘targeted strike’ on Beirut moments after the blast.
He added, in a threatening tone: ‘To be continued.’
Later, he issued several evacuation notices to residents of the neighborhoods of Haret Hreik, Bourj el-Barajné, and western Hadath, in the southern suburbs.
Typically, these notices are issued late at night, when families would be asleep and are followed by bombings not long after, leaving little to no time to escape.
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