Israeli strike hits south of Beirut as Lebanon says raids kill 14

Israel's military said it launched an airstrike in the Beirut area on Thursday as a Lebanese military source said an apartment was hit south of the capital, the second such raid since an April ceasefire announcement.

The escalation comes as Lebanon and Israel prepare for talks between military delegations at the Pentagon on Friday, and for U.S.-brokered talks early next week -- the fourth round since the latest Israel-Hezbollah war erupted on March 2.

After heavy strikes earlier Thursday that Lebanese authorities said killed at least 14 people, including three children, Israel's military said it "precisely struck in Beirut," without identifying the target.

The Lebanese military source told AFP on condition of anonymity that "an Israeli strike targeted an apartment in the Choueifat area."

AFPTV footage showed smoke rising from the area on the edge of Beirut's southern suburbs.

It is the second Israeli strike on south Beirut since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that was supposed to have taken effect on April 17 but has never been observed.

Both sides accuse each other of violating it and justify their attacks by the other camp's alleged breaches of the truce.

Hezbollah on Thursday claimed several attacks with rockets and drones on Israeli troops in south Lebanon.

AFP