Israel hits Beirut's suburbs in retaliatory attack against Hezbollah

Smoke rises from Israeli bombardment near the village of Mayfadoun as seen from nearby Marjayoun (Marjeyoun) in southern Lebanon on June 6, 2026. AFP/via Getty Images hide caption

Israel airstrikes hit Beirut's suburbs on Sunday, the first such attack on the Lebanese capital since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire was renewed last week.

In a post on X, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the attack in the Dahieh district of Beirut,, saying it was in retaliation for an earlier Hezbollah strike on Israel

Hezbollah, an Islamic resistance group separate from the official Lebanese Armed Forces, confirmed it attacked a group of Israeli state fighters with drones overnight, according to the National News Agency of Lebanon .

Middle East Institute senior fellow Brian Katulis noted that multiple ceasefires had been breached since November 2024. The latest ceasefire went into effect on April 17 and was renewed on Thursday. "These ceasefires between Israel and Hezbollah essentially have been quite tenuous, and they've been broken almost on a daily basis over the last few weeks," he said.

"Today's strikes seem like the latest tit for tat escalation," Katulis said. He added that the attacks on Beirut's suburbs did less damage than previous Israeli attacks throughout Lebanon.

Netanyahu was quoted in another post on X as saying that Israel's military is "completing the elimination of the terrorist villages adjacent to our border."

"We are striking them very hard, and we know that Hezbollah is on the run. We will not allow firing at our territory or our communities, and we will act accordingly," he said.