BEIRUT, Lebanon — At least four people were killed and around 10 others wounded after an Israeli airstrike hit the Ramada hotel building in central Beirut early on Sunday morning of March 8, 2026, Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported.

The strike struck an apartment inside the hotel in the Raouche area — one of Beirut’s busiest districts along the Mediterranean — in what officials described as the first major attack on the heart of the capital since hostilities resumed with Israel.

Witnesses and responders said ambulances rushed to the scene shortly after the explosion, transporting the wounded to nearby hospitals, while emergency crews cordoned off the surrounding area amid smoke and debris.

The Lebanese Health Ministry confirmed that at least four people lost their lives and around 10 others were injured in the strike, many of them civilians. Rescue workers continue to check for more victims and assist the wounded.

Israel’s military stated it targeted senior commanders from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, which it alleges were operating in Beirut, though specific names were not disclosed. The strike marked a significant escalation in the war between Israel and Iran aligned forces that has spilled over into Lebanon.

The Ramada hotel had reportedly been sheltering residents displaced by earlier strikes in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s suburbs, raising concerns about civilian harm amid intensified air operations across the region.

The attack comes amid widening conflict involving Iranian backed groups such as Hezbollah and the Israeli military, with both sides exchanging strikes and missiles across Lebanon and surrounding territories. Israeli officials have warned Iranian officers in Lebanon to leave or face targeted action.

As the humanitarian toll mounts and diplomatic pressure rises, the situation in Beirut and across Lebanon remains volatile, with residents bracing for further possible assaults and displacement.