BEIRUT, November 23, 2024 (WAFA) – At least 23 people were killed and 42 others were injured today in a series of airstrikes carried out by Israeli warplanes targeting multiple towns in the Baalbek district of eastern Lebanon.
According to Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA), the Israeli warplanes struck a home in the town of Chmistar, resulting in a massacre that left 13 people killed, including a mother and her four children. Thirteen others were also injured in the attack.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported multiple casualties across several towns in the Baalbek area following the recent Israeli airstrikes. In the town of Bodai, five people were killed, including two in critical condition, while three others were injured.
Additionally, four more people were killed, and three others injured in simultaneous Israeli attacks in the town of Flawiye. Additional fatalities were reported in the nearby town of Brital, where one person was killed, and in Ras al-Ain, where 18 people were injured, with three in critical condition. The town of Haour Taala also saw three injuries.
Further east, in the Baalbek-Hermel region, an Israeli airstrike on the town of Haret El Fikani in the central Beqaa Valley led to the killing of one person and left three others injured.
The Baalbek area, an ancient historical city dating back over 3,000 years and a UNESCO World Heritage site, is also at risk of losing its cultural heritage as Israeli airstrikes continue to target residential and historical sites. Previous strikes have already damaged some of the region's famous archaeological landmarks.
This latest round of Israeli airstrikes is part of a broader aggression on Lebanon, which has claimed the lives of at least 3,670 people and injured over 15,000 since the assault began in early October 2023. The toll includes a significant number of women and children.
Additionally, the Israeli onslaught, which escalated into a full-scale war in late September of this year, has displaced around 1.4 million people, many of whom have sought refuge to the northern parts of Lebanon.
Earlier today, Israeli airstrikes also targeted multiple towns and villages in the South Lebanon and Nabatieh governorates, killing at least 14 people and injuring 43 others in a series of attacks across the region.
Meantime, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported that the death toll from Israeli attacks on Friday alone had reached 25, with 58 others injured.
M.N
