Residents in a vast stretch of Beirut were told to get out on Thursday, marking a sharp escalation in Israel's confrontation with Hezbollah. The Israeli military ordered evacuations across the city's southern suburbs, an area known as Dahiyeh that it describes as a Hezbollah stronghold, telling hundreds of thousands to flee without specifying where they should go, the Guardian reports. Estimates of the area's population range between 300,000 and 700,000.
In a social media message delivered in Arabic, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Avichay Adraee urged people in four major neighborhoods—Bourj el-Barajneh, Hadath, Haret Hreik, and Shiyyah—to "save your lives and evacuate your homes immediately." He warned that moving south was forbidden and "could endanger your lives," adding that residents would be told later when it was safe to return. Dozens of people were killed in southern Beirut earlier this week when Israel launched airstrikes, saying it was responding to drones and missiles fired by Hezbollah.
It's believed to be the first time Israel has ordered residents out of such a broad section of the Lebanese capital, after previously focusing on specific buildings it said were targets. The AP reports that traffic in Beirut was gridlocked Thursday as residents tried to flee. Some expressed fears that Israel would strike wherever they went. Others said they were frustrated about Lebanon being drawn into the wider war. "We got sucked into a mess that we have nothing to do with," said fleeing resident Yousef Nabulsi. "People have been displaced and are now staying on the streets, and this is wrong."
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