Middle East: Israeli airstrike kills several in Beirut

Israel's government reported on Saturday that an Israeli-Moldovan dual citizen living in the UAE has gone missing, and an investigation was underway to determine if it relates to a "terrorist incident."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that Zvi Kogan has been missing since noon Thursday.

Netanyahu's office said Kogan was an envoy of Chabad, an Orthodox Jewish organization with chapters around the world.

"Since his disappearance, and against the backdrop of information that this was a terrorist incident, an extensive investigation has been opened in the country," the prime minister's office said.

The UAE foreign ministry did not immediately comment on the matter.

At least 44,176 people have been killed in Gaza during more than 13 months of fighting between the Israeli army and Palestinian militants, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said.

The toll includes 120 deaths in the previous 48 hours, according to the ministry

A total of 104,473 people have been wounded in Gaza by the ongoing Israeli military campaign there. The campaign began after Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, last year, resulting in the deaths of around 1,200 people.  

The new toll comes days after United Nations warned that aid delivery to the war-devastated territory is being crippled.

"The delivery of critical aid across Gaza, including food, water, fuel and medical supplies, is grinding to a halt," the UN's humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, Muhannad Hadi, said on Thursday,

Hadi added that Israeli authorities "have been banning commercial imports" for the past six weeks, while "a surge in armed looting" has hit aid convoys.

The Gaza Health Ministry said on Friday that hospitals have only two days' fuel left before they must restrict services. The ministry blamed Israel for what it said was obstruction of fuel delivery.

A deadly overnight strike on an eight-story building in central Beirut targeted a Hezbollah commander, according to a Lebanese security source cited by the AFP news agency.

"The Israeli strike on Basta targeted a leading Hezbollah figure," the security official told AFP without naming the figure.

Earlier on Saturday, Israeli public broadcaster KAN and Sky News Arabia reported that the airstrike had targeted Muhammad Haydar, Hezbollah's operations head.

It was not initially clear if Haydar was among those killed in the Israeli airstrike.

An Israeli airstrike killed at least 11 people and wounded 63 others in central Beirut early Saturday, Lebanese media reported, increasing the death toll from an initial four dead and 23 wounded.

"Beirut, the capital, woke up to a horrific massacre, as the Israeli enemy's air force completely destroyed an eight-story residential building with five missiles on Al-Mamoun Street in the Basta area," Lebanon's National News Agency said.

The attack, at about 4 a.m. local time (0200 UTC/GMT), saw five missiles level the building and damaging nearby structures.

According to media reports, at least three large explosions were heard in the capital.

This was the fourth Israeli strike in central Beirut this week, following earlier bombardments targeting southern suburbs controlled by Hezbollah.

On Friday, Israeli attacks in Beirut destroyed an 11-story building, further strikes in the country's south killed five Hezbollah paramedics, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

The United Nations also reported intense fighting on Friday between Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon.

According to the UN, a rocket, likely fired by Hezbollah, struck a base, leaving four Italian peacekeepers with minor injuries.

ss/sms (Reuters, AP, AFP, DPA)