This photo taken on Oct. 20, 2024 shows smoke caused by Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon. Israeli warplanes on Sunday evening began bombing branches of Al Qard Al Hassan, a financial institution affiliated with Hezbollah, al-Jadeed local TV channel reported. The TV channel confirmed that the branch of the financial institution in Chiyah in Beirut's southern suburbs had been attacked, with no immediate casualties reported yet. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
BEIRUT/JERUSALEM, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- Israeli warplanes on Sunday evening began bombing branches of Al Qard Al Hassan, a financial institution affiliated with Hezbollah, al-Jadeed local TV channel reported.
The TV channel confirmed that the branch of the financial institution in Chiyah in Beirut's southern suburbs had been attacked, with no immediate casualties reported yet.
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari threatened earlier in the day that the army was preparing to launch attacks on multiple sites in Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, to target buildings linked to Hezbollah's financial network.
"We will strike a large number of targets soon," Hagari told a press briefing, saying more additional targets would be attacked overnight.
He added that the attacks are part of a raid on organizations involved in dealing with funds transferred by Iran to Hezbollah to support its activities.
In a post on the social media platform X, the Israeli military claimed that it was about to bomb "infrastructure belonging to the Al Qard Al Hassan Association" in an attempt to cut off Hezbollah's financial sources, warning residents to stay "at least 500 meters" away from Al Qard Al Hassan locations "in the coming hours."
The financial organization operates primarily in Lebanon, with its headquarters located in Beirut's southern suburbs.
Since Sept. 23, the Israeli army has been launching intensive airstrikes on Lebanon, particularly Beirut's southern suburbs, a stronghold of Hezbollah, in a sharp escalation with Hezbollah. ■
This photo taken on Oct. 20, 2024 shows smoke caused by Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon. Israeli warplanes on Sunday evening began bombing branches of Al Qard Al Hassan, a financial institution affiliated with Hezbollah, al-Jadeed local TV channel reported.
The TV channel confirmed that the branch of the financial institution in Chiyah in Beirut's southern suburbs had been attacked, with no immediate casualties reported yet. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
This photo taken on Oct. 20, 2024 shows smoke caused by Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon. Israeli warplanes on Sunday evening began bombing branches of Al Qard Al Hassan, a financial institution affiliated with Hezbollah, al-Jadeed local TV channel reported.
The TV channel confirmed that the branch of the financial institution in Chiyah in Beirut's southern suburbs had been attacked, with no immediate casualties reported yet. (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)
