Mayor among 16 killed in Israeli strike on south Lebanon municipality building

Earlier on Wednesday, Israeli warplanes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs for the first time in nearly a week.
Reuters heard two blasts and saw plumes of smoke rising from two separate neighbourhoods. The blasts came after Israel issued an evacuation order which mentioned only one building.
The Israeli military said it had targeted an underground Hezbollah weapons stockpile.
“Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including advancing warnings to the population in the area,” the Israeli military said. Hezbollah did not immediately comment.
It was the first attack on Beirut since Oct 10, when two strikes near the city centre killed 22 people and brought down entire buildings in a densely populated neighbourhood.
Having long accused UNIFIL of failing in its mission to keep armed fighters out of the border area, Israel adopted a more conciliatory tone earlier on Wednesday.
“The State of Israel places great importance on the activities of UNIFIL and has no intention of harming the organization or its personnel,” Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.
“Furthermore, Israel views UNIFIL as playing an important role in the ‘day after’ following the war against Hezbollah.”