A series of powerful air-strikes hit the well-known Basta district in Beirut last weekend causing wide-spread destruction in the area. The night-time attack (which included four separate strikes) left a massive ground-level crater in this densely-packed neighborhood
Local emergency teams rushed to the blast-site where they found a completely destroyed residential building. Health Ministry officials reported that search-and-rescue operations located multiple victims in the debris: the current count shows 4 people lost their lives and 23 others got injuries
Lebanese state-run news sources along with international media confirmed the incident; while first-responders continued looking for any remaining survivors under collapsed building parts. The whole operation happened in the early morning hours when most residents were still in their homes
The strike-damaged area became a busy spot for rescue workers who carefully went through piles of concrete and metal searching for trapped residents. Security sources on-site provided details about the multiple hits that targeted this central Beirut location; as teams worked non-stop to help affected families