The death toll from an Israeli airstrike on central Beirut early Thursday morning has risen to nine, the Lebanese health ministry says.
The strike hit the neighborhood of Bashoura, near the city’s downtown, CNN confirmed, through geolocating the area.
An update from Lebanon’s health ministry later on Thursday said the death toll had risen to nine “martyrs.” In addition, 14 people were injured. DNA tests are underway to determine the identity of some of the remains.
Of the nine killed, seven were medics working for the Hezbollah-affiliated Islamic Health Authority. The authority had an office on one floor of the building which was hit during a wave of strikes on the Lebanese capital. CNN Turk found the building badly damaged, with rubble in the street.
CNN previously reported that at least six people had been killed in the strike.
It marks the first time Israel has struck the area since 2006. Israel’s strikes have killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon and displaced about 1 million residents since it escalated its war with Hezbollah.
