Beirut, Nov 17 (IANS): An Israeli airstrike targeting the office of Syria's Ba'ath Party in central Beirut on Sunday noon has killed Hezbollah Media Chief Mohammad Afif and three other people, local TV channel al-Jadeed reported.

According to al-Jadeed, Israeli warplanes attacked the office located between the area of Ras al-Nabaa and the Sodeco Square commercial centre with two air-to-surface missiles after the Ba'ath Party received a call from the Israeli army asking it to evacuate the building hosting the party.

Most part of the targeted building was destroyed during the airstrike, and ambulances rushed to the area to remove the rubble and search for victims, Xinhua news agency reported quoting al-Jadeed.

Since September 23, the Israeli army has levelled up its air attack on Lebanon in an escalation of conflict with Hezbollah. In early October, Israel initiated a ground operation across its northern border into Lebanon.

According to the Lebanese health ministry, the death toll from Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon since the beginning of the war on October 8, 2023, has reached 3,452, with injuries up to 14,664.