- Title: Explosions rock southern Beirut; planes take off from nearby airport
- Date: 4th March 2026
- Summary: BAABDA, LEBANON (MARCH 4, 2026) (REUTERS) AUDIO OF EXPLOSION IN AREA NEAR BEIRUT-RAFIC HARIRI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (0738 GMT) SMOKE BILLOWING IN RESIDENTIAL AREA (0740 GMT), CLOUD OF SMOKE RISING PLUME OF DARK GRAY SMOKE RISING RESIDENTIAL AREA / CAMERA ZOOMS IN SLIGHTLY (0641 GMT) / AUDIO OF EXPLOSION VARIOUS OF SMOKE RISING (2 SHOTS / FROM 0642 GMT) PLANE FLYING IN DIST
- Embargoed:
- Keywords: Beirut Blast Explosions Hezbollah Israel Lebnaon Smoke
- Location: BAABDA, LEBANON
- City: BAABDA, LEBANON
- Country: Lebanon
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Middle East,Military Conflicts
- Reuters ID: LVA001072404032026RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Plumes of dark smoke billowed over a residential area in Baabda, as explosions rocked Beirut's southern suburbs on Wednesday (March 4).
Footage showed thick smoke rising from the struck areas, with sounds of gunfire and view of planes taking off from the nearby Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport.
Israel has carried out waves of air strikes across Lebanon and sent troops into the south, as fighting along the Lebanese-Israeli border escalated with Hezbollah.
Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah, established by Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982, opened fire on Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader in joint strikes by Israel and the United States.
Hezbollah said on Wednesday its fighters fired a salvo of rockets at a gathering of Israeli forces near the Metula area along the frontier in response to Israeli strikes on dozens of Lebanese towns and cities, including Beirut's southern suburbs. The Israeli military on Wednesday warned residents of 16 villages in Lebanon to evacuate, saying Hezbollah activity was forcing it to act against the group and cautioning that anyone near Hezbollah fighters, facilities or weapons would be putting their lives at risk.
(Production: Abdelaziz Boumzar, Zainab Elhaj) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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