Israel Strikes Beirut, Expanding Offensive in Lebanon

Israel escalated its military offensive in Lebanon on May 28, 2026, striking Beirut for the first time in nearly a month. The Israeli military targeted an apartment building in the southern suburbs of the capital, a densely populated area where Hezbollah operates. Lebanon’s state-run news agency confirmed the attack, raising fears that Beirut, which had largely avoided strikes since a ceasefire last month, could now be drawn back into the conflict. Over the previous 24 hours, Israel conducted more than 135 strikes against Hezbollah in southern and eastern Lebanon, including rocket launch sites and training camps. Many strikes occurred in residential areas, killing six civilians, including a mother and her two children, near the city of Sidon, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. Hezbollah continued its attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, prompting repeated sirens in Israeli border communities. Israeli forces advanced beyond the ‘forward defense line,’ a zone extending several miles into Lebanon that Israel has occupied since its March invasion. The offensive intensified around Zawtar al-Sharqiyah, a southern Lebanese town near the Israeli border. The escalation risks undermining fragile U.S.-Iran negotiations to end the war in Iran, as Iran demands an end to Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah as part of any deal. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated earlier this week that Israel is ‘deepening its operation’ in Lebanon, leaving uncertainty over whether the conflict will be included in a potential U.S.-Iran agreement. Iranian officials have previously indicated that a peace deal would require an end to fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon, though Netanyahu has suggested Israel will retain the right to self-defense against Hezbollah.