BEIRUT

Israeli warplanes launched a new wave of airstrikes late Saturday on the southern suburbs of Beirut.

It is the third wave of airstrikes on the area since the morning, and the seventh since early Thursday.

Fighter jets carried out intense airstrikes on the Haret Hreik, Borj al-Barajneh and near the Lycée Pilote school in the Hadath area, according to the Lebanese news agency.

The strikes came shortly after a warning by the Israeli army to the residents in buildings in those areas to immediately evacuate in preparation for the bombing campaign.

Israel launched an air campaign in Lebanon against what it claims are targets of the Hezbollah group in late September, in an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare.

More than 3,400 people have been killed, nearly 14,700 injured and more than 1 million displaced by Israeli attacks since last October, according to Lebanese health authorities.​​​​​​​

Despite international warnings that the Middle East region was on the brink of a regional war, Tel Aviv expanded the conflict by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala