WorldIsrael's air force struck a southern suburb of Beirut on Thursday afternoon, its military said, amid a broader escalation in southern Lebanon where Israeli troops have crossed the Litani River over the past days and warned residents to leave much of the area.Attacks come as Israeli troops expand operations in the southThe Associated Press · Posted: May 28, 2026 8:39 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoListen to this articleEstimated 6 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.The Israeli military said Thursday it had begun new strikes on Hezbollah infrastructure around the southern Lebanese city of Tyre after issuing an evacuation warning to its residents. (Kawnat Haju/AFP/Getty Images)Israel's air force struck a southern suburb of Beirut on Thursday afternoon, its military said, amid a broader escalation of hostilities in southern Lebanon.The target of the airstrike on the suburb of Choueifat was not immediately clear. Videos from the area, which is close to Beirut's international airport, showed white smoke billowing from a residential neighbourhood. Tensions have been increasing in the south, where Israeli troops in recent days have crossed the strategic Litani River, which they have used as a de facto boundary. Large areas are under Israeli military control despite the Washington-brokered ceasefire that's been in place since April 17.Thursday's was the first attack close to the Lebanese capital since May 6, when an Israeli strike killed a military official with Hezbollah's elite Radwan Forces in another of its suburbs.Overnight, strikes by Israel across southern Lebanon — including in Tyre, the country's fourth-largest city — killed at least 14 people as its conflict continued with Hezbollah. A fireball erupts from a building following an Israeli strike in Tyre, southern Lebanon on Thursday. (Kawant Haju/AFP/Getty Images)Israel had issued warnings to eight buildings and surrounding neighbourhoods in the coastal city prior to those attacks, prompting many people to flee the area. Dozens of others were wounded, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry and the state-run National News Agency.An Israeli soldier meanwhile was killed in a Hezbollah drone attack in northern Israel, the Israeli military said. Two reservists were wounded.U.S.-Iran ceasefire extension to be considered by Trump, American officials sayHezbollah’s cheap, easy-to-get drones have Israeli soldiers diving for coverOn Thursday afternoon, the Israeli military issued another evacuation warning for Tyre and its suburbs.Considered one of the oldest metropolises of the world, Tyre has several archeological sites, some of them submerged, including Roman baths, a colonnaded road, a Roman residential quarter, the remains of a cathedral built in 1127, a hippodrome built in the second century and the remains of El-Bass necropolis.The city was officially declared a UNESCO World heritage site in 1984.'Deep pain and profound concern'Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi said in a statement he has been following "with deep pain and profound concern" the ongoing Israeli attacks on Tyre."I have begun a series of intensive diplomatic contacts to demand an immediate halt to these attacks and to raise the voice in defence of a civilizational heritage," he said.The intensification comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced an expansion in the Israeli military's attacks in Lebanon, apparently sparked by Hezbollah's use of fibre-optic exploding drones that have struck Israeli troops in Lebanon and reached some of Israel's northern border towns. A man inspects the site of an Israeli strike in Tyre on Thursday. (Stringers/Reuters)Lebanese and Israeli military officials are set to hold their first security talks on Friday in Washington. The talks have extended a nominal ceasefire that went into effect April 17, although the attacks have since intensified. Hezbollah has dismissed the talks and instead endorsed its key ally Iran, which has made ending the war in Lebanon a condition for its own talks with Washington brokered by Pakistan. Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said Netanyahu instructed the military to "deepen" its operation in Lebanon, saying it involves seizing and fortifying territory to protect communities of Israel's north.Despite the escalation, Mencer said Israel would continue the U.S.-mediated negotiations with Lebanon in Washington, saying the talks aim to disarm Hezbollah and reach "a peace agreement that will strengthen security and stability in our region."5 children killed in apartment strikeFurther north in the city of Sidon, an Israeli drone struck an apartment building where some displaced families lived, killing five people and wounding 21 others, among them five children. Among those killed was Hossan Zeidan who once was a correspondent for Iran's Arabic-language al-Aalam television.Mohammad Al-Gharbi, who lived across the street from the building, woke to the sound of the explosion. "I was in my room when part of the wall and shattered glass fell on me, and everything was thrown into chaos," he said. "This building that was hit had six apartments occupied by poor families who had fled from the south to escape the attacks there, only to be hit here."WATCH | Israel is escalating air attacks on Lebanon:Escalating attacks jeopardize Israel, Hezbollah ceasefireMay 26|Duration 2:13An increase in attacks on both sides of the border have put a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in jeopardy.In the nearby coastal town of Adloun, an Israeli drone struck a car with a family that was fleeing, killing six people, of which four were two children and their parents, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. Another drone strike that came without warning killed two people on a motorcycle near Tyre. The target of the attack was not immediately clear, NNA reported.Elsewhere near the city of Nabatiyeh, the Lebanese military said a soldier was killed in an Israeli drone strike while he was driving his motorcycle.Hezbollah has claimed dozens of drone and rocket attacks that it says targeted Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and northern Israel. The group said Thursday it has launched several attacks on Israeli troops and tanks that have crossed the Litani River into the town of Zawtar al-Sharqieh near Nabatiyeh, as close-range fighting continues.Lebanese bury victims of deadliest Israeli strike since ceasefire was announcedIsrael expands ground operation beyond 'yellow line' in south Lebanon as clashes intensifyOver one million people in Lebanon have been displaced by the war between Israel and Hezbollah, which was sparked when Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel on March 2 in solidarity with Iran, two days after the Iran war began. At least 3,269 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the start of the war, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry, with over 9,800 wounded.According to Netanyahu's office, at least 23 Israeli soldiers and a defense contractor have been killed in or near southern Lebanon and two civilians have been killed in northern Israel, the vast majority by drones.