Dozens killed in strike in north Gaza as Israel pounds Lebanon

A building in the Ras al Nabaa - Sodeco area of central Beirut outside the areas indicated by Israeli army warnings has been hit by an airstrike, according to local media reports.

Lebanese channel Al Jadeed reported that the strike hit the building of the Lebanon branch of the Hezb al-Ba'ath party known for its ties to Syria.

Israel has been hitting sites in Beirut's suburbs since early morning and has issued warnings prior to the attacks, but this strike came without warning.

We will update when we have more information.

المبنى الذي استهدفته الغارة الاسرائيلية منذ دقائق في محيط رأس النبع- السوديكو pic.twitter.com/CNX8fWicOV

— Al Jadeed News (@ALJADEEDNEWS) November 17, 2024

Pope Francis has called for an investigation to determine if Israel’s attacks in Gaza constitute genocide , according to excerpts released Sunday from an upcoming new book ahead of the pontiff's jubilee year.

It's the first time that Francis has openly urged for an investigation of genocide allegations over Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip. In September, he said Israel's attacks in Gaza and Lebanon have been “immoral” and disproportionate , and that its military has gone beyond the rules of war.

The book, by Hernán Reyes Alcaide and based on interviews with the Pope, is entitled “Hope never disappoints. Pilgrims towards a better world." It will be released on Tuesday ahead of the pope's 2025 jubilee. Francis’ yearlong jubilee is expected to bring more than 30 million pilgrims to Rome to celebrate the Holy Year.

“According to some experts, what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide,” the pope said in excerpts published Sunday by the Italian daily La Stampa.

Read more here.

The health ministry in Gaza said on Sunday that at least 43,846 people have been killed in more than 13 months of war.

The toll includes 47 deaths and 139 wounded people in the previous 24 hours, according to the ministry, which said 103,740 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.

Gaza's government media office said the strike on a building in Beit Lahia this morning killed 72 people in the latest assessment of the damage as rescuers have been working to retrieve people under rubble.

The building was housing many families sheltering in the town since it came under blockade following Israel's renewed operation into north Gaza at the start of October.

In a statement the media office said Israeli army "committed 4 brutal massacres during the past hours, bombing several residential buildings and civilian homes, killing more than 72 martyrs from the families of Ghabayen, Ghanem, Safi, Ayada, Abdul Ati and Al-Taluli in Beit Lahia".

Israel said some 20 projectiles were fired towards Haifa and the western Galilee region on Sunday morning following air raid sirens at around 10am local time.

The Israeli military said the projectiles crossed from Lebanon and some "fell in open areas" and others were intercepted.

Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah said earlier on Sunday it fired a rocket salvo in the north of Haifa area.

Israeli army Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued evacuation orders for residents in Haret Hreik area of Beirut, claiming there are “Hezbollah facilities” in the area.

Earlier on Sunday, Adraee ordered residents of Hadath, Burj al-Barajneh and Chiyyah to evacuate which were subsequently hit by strikes according to reports.

International law protects civilians who choose to remain in zones which come under evacuation orders.

#عاجل إلى جميع السكان المتواجدين في منطقة الضاحية الجنوبية وتحديدًا في المباني المحددة في الخرائط المرفقة والمباني المجاورة لها في المناطق التالية:
🔸حدث بيروت
🔸برج البراجنة
🔸الشياح

⭕️أنتم تتواجدون بالقرب من منشآت ومصالح تابعة لحزب الله حيث سيعمل ضدها جيش الدفاع على المدى… pic.twitter.com/52GOiwu9z9

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) November 17, 2024

An Israeli strike hit a residential building in Beit Lahia in north Gaza on Sunday morning where some 70 people were sheltering, according to local sources.

Quds News Network reported that dozens of people have been killed, including women and children, with many others still missing.

Gaza Health Ministry’s Director-General Munir al-Bursh told Al Jazeera network that some 20 to 30 people are still under the rubble and that “30 percent” of the victims are children.

The Israeli army sent tanks into Beit Lahiya and the nearby towns of Beit Hanoun and Jabalia last month in what it claimed was an operation to prevent Hamas from regrouping.

It follows a major strike on central Gaza’s Al-Bureij refugee camp which killed some 15 Palestinians, including 10 members of the Aqel family last night.

An Israeli strike hit south Beirut on Sunday where the military said it targeted Hezbollah, hours after the Iran-backed group said it fired on Israeli bases around the city of Haifa.

A column of smoke rose over the capital's southern suburbs, AFPTV footage showed, following a warning from the Israeli military for residents to evacuate three areas.

Further south, overnight Israeli airstrikes and artillery shelling hit the flashpoint southern town of Khiam, some six kilometres (four miles) from the border, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported early Sunday.

The bombardment came after Israel's military reported a "heavy rocket barrage" on Haifa late Saturday and said a synagogue was hit, wounding two civilians.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that a fighter in the Nachshon Regiment (90), Kafir Brigade, was killed in battle north of Gaza on Saturday.

Nearly 800 soldiers have been killed since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, according to Israeli government figures.