Lebanon - July 31, 2024

Storyline:
Israel's army on Tuesday launched an airstrike on the southern suburb of Lebanese capital Beirut and claimed to have killed Hezbollah's top military commander Fouad Shokor who was allegedly behind a cross-border rocket attack that killed 12 youngsters in the Israeli-controlled Goland Heights on Saturday.

Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant group and political party, did not immediately confirm Shokor's condition, while Lebanese media reports had earlier said the attack had missed the commander.

A strong blast was heard in the Lebanese capital late on Tuesday, and video footage subsequently posted on social media showed mass destruction of a residential building, with rubble scattered in the street.

According to the Lebanese health ministry, four have been killed, including at least one woman and two children, and 74 people were injured in the attack in the area around Hezbollah's Shura Council.

A China Media Group (CMG) reporter in Beirut said the Israeli drone struck a residential building in the southern suburb of the Lebanese capital at around 19:40 local time on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Zhao Bing, a CMG reporter based in Jerusalem gave an update on the Israeli side's response to the attack.

In a press release, the IDF blamed Shokor for being behind the deadly rocket attack on Saturday that hit a football pitch in Majdal Shams, a Druze town in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, saying that the commander "was responsible for the majority of Hezbollah's most advanced weaponry," and also accusing him of the "planning and execution of terror attacks against the State of Israel".

Shotlist:
FILE: Beirut, Lebanon - May 2023:
1. National flag of Lebanon;
Beirut, Lebanon - July 31, 2024:
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Wang Jingxiu, China Media Group (CMG) reporter (ending with shots 3-4):
"At around 19:40 on Tuesday, an Israeli drone struck a residential building in the southern suburb [of Beirut]. After the attack, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that the target of the attack was a Hezbollah military commander, and accused him of participating in the attack on the Goland Heights on Saturday. At the time of the attack, Hezbollah issued five consecutive statements, saying that its armed forces attacked Israeli military targets on the temporary border between Lebanon and Israel and in northern Israel, while it has not yet issued any official statement in response to the attack in the southern suburb of Beirut. Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati condemned the attack and said they will convene a cabinet meeting to discuss the latest developments."
Beirut, Lebanon - July 31, 2024:
3. Various of destroyed building, crowds;
4. Various of ambulances;
Jerusalem - July 20, 2024:
5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhao Bing, China Media Group reporter (starting with shot 4/ending with shots 6-10):
"In the early hours of Wednesday, after the Israeli army launched the airstrike on southern Beirut, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately convened a security assessment meeting in Tel Aviv. Officials from Israel's intelligence departments and the military attended the meeting, including the defense minister, IDF Chief of Staff, and heads of the Mossad intelligence agency and the Shin Bet security agency. Subsequently, the IDF issued a statement confirming that it launched a targeted airstrike on the area near Beirut on Saturday evening. In the early morning of Wednesday, IDF spokesman Hagari said in a video speech that Israel does not want a full-scale conflict with Hezbollah, but is also ready to respond to retaliatory attacks. He also said that IDF has not adjusted its defense guidelines for the public and is accessing the security situation."
FILE: Tel Aviv, Israel - June 2021:
6. National flag of Israel;
FILE: Sderot, Israel - May 16, 2021:
7. Streets, national flags of Israel;
FILE: Tel Aviv, Israel - April 27, 2024:
8. Pedestrians;
Beirut, Lebanon - July 31, 2024:
9. Various of destroyed building, crowds;
10. Various of ambulances, rescuers.

[Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland]