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Israel on Sunday claimed it had carried out an air strike targeting Hezbollah\u2019s chief of staff in Beirut, leaving a smoking hole in the side of an apartment building and debris scattered in the street, according to AFP<\/em> journalists.<\/p>\n Lebanon\u2019s health ministry reported at least one person was killed in the strike and 21 people were wounded, calling it a \u201cpreliminary toll\u201d.<\/p>\n The strike took place in Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs, a densely populated area where Hezbollah holds sway, and caused \u201cinjuries and significant damage\u201d, according to Lebanon\u2019s official National News Agency<\/em> (NNA<\/em>).<\/p>\n Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s office claimed he had given the orders for the attack, the latest against a target in Lebanon, despite a year-long ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.<\/p>\n \u201cA short while ago, in the heart of Beirut, the IDF (Israeli military) attacked the Hezbollah chief of staff, \u201d the premier\u2019s office said in a statement. \u201cIsrael is determined to act to achieve its objectives everywhere and at all times.\u201d<\/p>\n An AFP<\/em> correspondent at the scene said the strike hit the third and fourth floors of a nine-storey building, with ambulances gathered around it and rescuers inspecting the apartments.<\/p>\n NNA<\/em> reported three missiles were fired at the building in the Haret Hreik area, damaging vehicles and other nearby structures.<\/p>\n A senior US official said Israel did not notify the United States in advance about its strike, an Axios<\/em><\/a> reporter said on Sunday in a post on X.<\/p>\n The official said the administration was informed immediately after the strike and a second senior US official said Washington knew for days that Israel was planning to escalate strikes in Lebanon, the post read.<\/p>\n \n <\/a>\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called on the international community to intervene firmly to stop Israeli attacks on the country after Sunday\u2019s deadly strike.<\/p>\n In a statement, Aoun said Lebanon \u201creiterates its call to the international community to assume its responsibility and intervene firmly and seriously to stop the attacks on Lebanon and its people\u201d.<\/p>\n Israel has carried out near-daily strikes<\/a> in Lebanon since the November 2024 ceasefire <\/a>that sought to end more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, usually saying it is striking members of the group in the country\u2019s south and east.<\/p>\n Sunday\u2019s strike, however, was the first on Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs since June 5, when Israel said it hit a Hezbollah drone factory.<\/p>\n It follows an earlier strike<\/a> on the southern town of Aita al-Shaab, which the Lebanese health ministry said killed one person.<\/p>\n