Israeli warplanes struck central Beirut and the city’s southern suburbs on Tuesday, raising palls of smoke over the Lebanese capital ahead of a planned vote by Israel’s leadership on whether to accept a US-brokered ceasefire aimed at ending more than a year of fighting with Hezbollah.
The Israeli military also issued warnings for 20 more buildings in Beirut’s suburbs to evacuate before they too were struck – a sign it was aiming to inflict punishment on Hezbollah down to the last moments before any ceasefire takes hold.
Israeli ground troops also reached parts of Lebanon’s Litani River for the first time in the conflict – a focal point of the emerging ceasefire.
A ceasefire was still not a sure thing, but Israel’s security Cabinet, meeting on Tuesday afternoon, was expected …