Israel Conducts Air Strike in Beirut

State of the Union: The strike is the first of its kind since the beginning of the Gaza war.

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The Israeli Defense Forces claimed to have carried out a “targeted airstrike” in Beirut Tuesday. According to Lebanese media, the strike killed at least one woman and was conducted by a drone launching three missiles.

The airstrike was conducted in response to the death of 12 children from Israel’s Arabic-speaking Druze minority in a July 27 missile attack on the town of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights. After the attack, Israel blamed Hezbollah. Hezbollah published a rare denial. 

“Hezbollah crossed the red line,” Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced today after the retaliatory strike, which purportedly targeted a Hezbollah commander responsible for the Golan Heights attack. 

According to reports, Israel notified the United States through security channels ahead of the strike on Beirut.

It is unclear whether the strike will lead to further escalation in the conflict. Some in the Israeli cabinet seem inclined towards escalation. “The Hezbollah attack today crossed all red lines, and the response will be accordingly. We are approaching the moment of an all-out war against Hezbollah and Lebanon,” Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Axios on July 27.

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