BEIRUT, Lebanon — Israeli airstrikes on Saturday in central Beirut killed at least 15 people, officials said, as once-rare strikes in the heart of the Lebanese capital continued without Israeli warning and diplomats rushed to negotiate a ceasefire. fire.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 63 people were injured in the strikes, the fourth in central Beirut in less than a week.

The escalation comes after US envoy Amos Hochstein traveled to the region seeking a ceasefire agreement to end months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, which degenerated into all-out war.

Israeli bombings have killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health. The fighting has displaced around 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, around 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians were killed by bombings in northern Israel and fighting.

The 4 a.m. strikes destroyed an eight-story building in central Beirut. Hezbollah lawmaker Amin Shiri said no Hezbollah officials were inside. Some facades of neighboring buildings were removed and residents looked out among the crumpled cars.

“The neighborhood is residential, with tightly packed buildings and narrow streets, which makes the situation difficult,” said Walid Al-Hashash, a first responder with the Lebanese Civil Defense.

The Israeli army has not commented on the casualties.

Also on Saturday, a drone strike killed two people and injured three others in the southern port city of Tyre, according to the national news agency.

Mohammed Bikai, spokesman for the Palestinian Fatah faction in the Tire region, said those killed were Palestinian refugees from the nearby al-Rashidieh camp who were fishing.

Despite a warning last month from the Israeli military to avoid Lebanon’s southern coast, “you can’t tell someone who needs to eat that you can’t fish,” Bikai said.

The Health Ministry said other airstrikes killed eight people, including four children, in the eastern town of Shmustar; five in the southern village of Roumin and five in the northeastern village of Budai.

Two Western diplomatic officials on Saturday outlined the contentious points between Israel and Lebanon in the ceasefire negotiations. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks.

The current proposal calls for a two-month ceasefire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the southern border, south of the Litani River. Thousands of additional Lebanese army troops would patrol the border area with U.N. peacekeepers, and an international committee would monitor implementation.

The officials said Israel wanted more guarantees that Hezbollah weapons would be removed from the border area. Israeli officials have said they would not accept a deal that did not explicitly grant them the freedom to strike in Lebanon if they believed Hezbollah was violating it.

Lebanese officials have said that including such a term would violate Lebanon’s sovereignty, and Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said this week that the militant group would not accept a deal that did not involve “the complete and comprehensive end to the aggression.”

Lebanon and Israel are also arguing over which countries would sit on the monitoring committee. Officials said Israel had refused to allow France, which has been close to Lebanon since the end of its colonial rule. Lebanon refused to accept Britain, a close ally of Israel.

In northern Gaza, the Health Ministry said at least 80 people were killed between Thursday and Friday, including near Kamal Adwan and Al-Ahli hospitals. Dozens of people were trapped under the rubble.

The Israeli military said it was unaware of a strike near Kamal Adwan and did not respond to other attacks.

On Saturday, at least six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern town of Khan Younis, according to Associated Press journalists and Nasser Hospital staff.

“Suddenly we woke up to dust, smoke and fire,” said Ahmad Ghassan, a grieving father. “We found him dead and his brother injured.” Another father cried as he carried his child’s body in a bloodstained sheet.

The Palestinian death toll from the 13-month war surpassed 44,000 this week, according to the Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. It was reported that more than half of the dead are women and children. The Israeli army claims to have killed more than 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians. and removing 250 more. Around a hundred hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.

The Israeli offensive in Gaza devastated large areas, and around 90% of the population of 2.3 million people have been displaced, often repeatedly. Hundreds of thousands of people live in tent camps with little food, water or basic services.

At least two women were shot dead Saturday while queuing for bread in central Deir al-Balah, relatives and witnesses told the AP. It is unclear who shot them and why.

Conditions in Gaza prompted this week’s ruling by the International Criminal Court issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on “reasonable grounds” that they bear responsibility for a war crime and crimes against humanity. The court also issued an arrest warrant for senior Hamas official Mohammed Deif, whom Israel claims to have killed.

Netanyahu condemned the mandate. Global reactions have been mixed.

Britain reiterated its support for the court, but did not say whether it would arrest Netanyahu if it visited. Russia does not recognize the jurisdiction of the Court and has made no comment. The United States also does not recognize the jurisdiction of the Court and has rejected its decision.

Nomi Bar-Yaacov, an associate fellow at the international security program at London think tank Chatham House, said that while Netanyahu could not travel to many European countries because of the risk of arrest, he would visit the United States. -United. .

“This will only strengthen his ties to Donald Trump,” she said.

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Associated Press writers Fadi Tawil in Tyre, Lebanon, Ibrahim Hazboun in Jerusalem, Wafaa Shurafa in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Mohammad Jahjouh in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, and Danica Kirka in London contributed to this report.

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