The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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By:AFP
Israeli attacks have killed 19 people, including eight women, near the city of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon, the country’s health ministry has said.
This has come a few hours after tens of thousands of residents fled due to evacuation orders issued by the Israeli army.
Mayor Mustafa al-Shell told the BBC more than 20 attacks were reported on Wednesday afternoon in the Baalbek area, with five inside the city itself, home to an ancient Roman temple complex recognized by Unesco.
The Israeli military said it had struck Hezbollah command and control centers and infrastructure in Baalbek and Nabatiyeh, southern Lebanon.
The army also said it targeted Hezbollah fuel stations in the Bekaa Valley, where Baalbek is located.
It did not give any details, but Lebanon’s state news agency said diesel tanks had been hit in the town of Douris, where Mr Shell said pictures showed thick black smoke rising into the air.
The attacks came as Hezbollah’s new secretary-general said the group would continue its war plan against Israel under his leadership and that it would “not demand” a ceasefire.
Speaking a day after his appointment was announced, Naim Qassem said he will follow the agenda of his predecessor, Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut last month.
