At least five people have been killed in an Israeli strike on a medical facility in Beirut, according to Lebanese officials. The Health Authority Centre was affiliated with Hezbollah
The announcement comes after a series of loud blasts have been heard by BBC reporters in the Lebanese city, as the Israeli military says it conducted "precise strikes" there
Three explosions were heard in Dahieh, in the city's southern suburbs - with a fourth blast at a building close to central Beirut
It comes as the IDF and Hezbollah report ground fighting inside southern Lebanon, a day after Israel announced it was invading
It later reports the deaths of eight Israeli soldiers in combat - the first inside Lebanon since the invasion began
Earlier, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran would "pay", after Iran fired around 180 missiles at Israel on Tuesday
Lebanese officials say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the past two weeks, while around a million may now be displaced
Watch: Analysing where Iran's missiles struck in Israel
The Palestinian civil defence authority in the occupied West Bank city of Jericho says a man there died during the Iranian missile barrage.
According to the AFP news agency, which has spoken to city governor Hussein Hamayel, the victim was killed by falling rocket debris.
Israeli officials have not reported any serious injuries as a result of Tuesday's air attacks.
Chris Mason
Political editor
In just two sentences on Tuesday night Defence Secretary John Healey confirmed that UK armed forces have again been involved in supporting Israel in the conflict in the Middle East.
"British forces have this evening played their part in attempts to prevent further escalation,” Healey said, adding: “I want to thank all British personnel involved in the operation for their courage and professionalism.”
No further information has been formally released, but I understand UK jets were involved again – as they were when Iran last launched missiles at Israel in April – a decision taken by the previous Conservative government and supported at the time and since by now-Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Nafiseh Kohnavard
BBC Persian Middle East correspondent, reporting from Beirut
Gunfire broke out and fireworks were let off in Lebanon's capital as news broke of Iran’s missile attack on Israel as Hezbollah members, Palestinian groups and Iran's supporters here celebrated.
At a school that is now a shelter for people displaced by Israel's military actions, two young men from civil defence held up two fingers in a "V-for-victory" sign to our camera. "We are victorious. We are so happy," they shouted.
Previously some Hezbollah supporters and others in Lebanon had been critical of Iran, saying the country had "sold Hezbollah out". Some also told me that as Tehran hadn't avenged the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh this had emboldened Israel.
Now one of them texts me: "OK I withdraw my words." But another one says: "It’s only a show. Our leader is gone and no revenge will bring him back."
Nick Beake
Reporting from northern Israel
Israeli jets and helicopters continued to roar through the sky near the Lebanese border during the early hours of Wednesday. Earlier it was Iranian missiles.
One local man – in this 60s - showed us a video he captured on his phone showing the moment a rocket was intercepted by air defence right above him.
He said he was waiting for the Israeli response to Tehran’s attack but was sure it would be strong - gesturing to his arm muscles.
All evening there have been dull thuds in the distance as Israel continues to pound Hezbollah positions. And every now and then we can see bright flashes beyond the distant hills.
Tonight we met a nursery school teacher, walking her dog, who said she’d been forced from her home near the Lebanese border last November because of Hezbollah rocket fire. She just wanted to go back, she told us.
Returning tens of thousands to their homes in the north of this country is the central aim - and justification - for Israeli’s intensified attack on Hezbollah and now the ground invasion into Lebanon.
But it has led to tonight’s missile barrage from Iran, to which Israel says it must now respond.
A spiral of violence with no obvious end.
Image source, ReuUK Defence Secretary John Healey has just confirmed that British forces "played their part" on Tuesday evening as part of "attempts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East".
In a statement, Healey said: "I completely condemn Iran's attack against Israel.
"British forces have this evening played their part in attempts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East.
"I want to thank all British personnel involved in the operation for their courage and professionalism.
"The UK stands fully behind Israel's right to defend its country and its people against threats."
No further details about the exact nature of Britain's involvement were given.
More now from Lebanon, as the Israeli military says it's ordered residents to evacuate from areas near two buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs.
Posting on X, the IDF's Arabic spokesperson says the military will "act forcefully" against those buildings - which he says are Hezbollah installations - in the near future.
Avichay Adraee warns residents to stay at least 500 metres (1,640 ft) away from the buildings in the Haret Hreik neighbourhood, alongside maps locating them.
Previous warnings of this kind have preceded targeted strikes against the specified buildings - usually intended assassinations of Hezbollah members or infrastructure.
Image source, EPASmoke rising as a result of an Israeli strike near Yaroun village, southern Lebanon, earlier today
We can bring you an update from Lebanon now.
Fifty-five people were killed and 156 wounded in Israeli attacks across Lebanon on Tuesday, the Lebanese health ministry says in a new statement.
The announcement follows the start of the Israeli military's ground invasion across Lebanon's south, as well as continuing air attacks against Hezbollah targets in the country and in the capital Beirut.
Lebanese officials say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the past two weeks, while around a million may now be displaced.
Tom Bateman
State Department correspondent, BBC News
Having warned of “severe consequences” for Iran over any direct military attack on Israel, Washington is now being pressed on what happens next.
White House National Security Advisory Jake Sullivan said the US was working with Israel to make sure such consequences were the case.
The region is now well into a further sharp cycle of escalation, precisely the scenario President Joe Biden has spent months trying to avert - attempting to stem the Gaza war engulfing the rest of the region, whilst continuing an almost continuous supply of arms to Israel.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Washington had attempted to use both deterrence and diplomacy to de-escalate the region.
Pressed by the BBC on whether it was still taking this approach when working with the Israelis on the response to Iran, he said of course - they were always using both deterrence and diplomacy.
Image source, ReutersMore US reaction to Iran's strike on Israel now, as President Joe Biden says the US is "fully, fully, fully supportive" of Israel.
He says that at his direction, the US military "actively supported the defence of Israel" during the strike.
Based on current information, he says the attack appears to have been "defeated and ineffective".
US Vice-President Kamala Harris - the Democratic party's candidate in November's presidential election - has been giving her reaction to today's missile attack.
Harris says she watched the attack unfold in real time from the White House Situation Room, and describes Iran as a "destabilising force" in the Middle East.
She says she fully supported President Joe Biden's decision to order US Navy ships in the Mediterranean to shoot down missiles aimed at Israel.
She adds that while efforts to assess the impact of Monday's barrage are continuing, it looks like Israel had been able to defeat the attack with US help.
"My commitment to the security of Israel is unwavering," Harris adds, saying that the US "will never hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to defend US forces and interests against Iran and Iran-backed terrorists".
Image source, Reuters
Image source, x/ @netanyahuIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Iran "made a big mistake tonight, and will pay for it".
Speaking at the opening of a cabinet meeting, the Israeli PM says Iran "does not understand" his country's "determination to retaliate" against its enemies.
"They will understand," he says. "We will stand by the rule we established: whoever attacks us - we will attack" them.
The EU condemns Iran's missile strike on Israel in the "strongest terms", says European Commission Vice President Josep Borrell.
In a post on X, he adds: "The dangerous cycle of attacks and retaliation risks to spiralling out of control. An immediate ceasefire across the region is needed."
Image source, Getty ImagesIran's attack on Israel tonight was about "twice the scope" of its attack in April, in terms of the ballistic missiles used, according to the Pentagon.
In a press briefing, Maj Gen Patrick Ryder says two US Navy destroyers fired approximately a dozen interceptors towards Iranian missiles.
He does not confirm whether they hit any of the missiles used in the attack - adding that information was yet to be established.
Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Jerusalem
Image source, ReutersHere in the Jerusalem Bureau, we moved to the shelter in a secure part of the building with no windows.
As missiles flew overhead, messages streamed in from people in different parts of the country, also waiting in their safe rooms.
“There’s a lot of alarms all the time so we’re in the safe room… But we’re OK for now,” a mother of two in the south of Israel told me by voice note.
“Very, very scary. I still cannot believe this is our life… it was VERY close,” a message from a journalist in Tel Aviv said.
“Usually we stay on our floor and don’t go down to the shelter but this time…we realised we had to go down.”
“It was very loud,” lawyer Efrat Eldan Schechter says by WhatsApp message from Ra’anana in central Israel, adding that she believes “it is not the end for tonight”.
“We need to see how it will evolve. It is very scary indeed… but we are strong and confident that our IDF will protect us. Iran just made a huge mistake".
Jenny Kumah
Correspondent in Washington DC
Image source, EPAThe White House says it’s not aware of any deaths in Israel following strikes by Iran, but adds that this is a fluid situation so numbers and details could change.
During a press briefing, National Security spokesperson Jake Sullivan describes the strikes by Iran as a “significant escalation” and says it appears to have been “defeated and ineffective” without any known damage to Israeli aircraft and strategic military assets.
He says Iran launched around 200 ballistic missiles towards Israel and US naval destroyers helped Israel shoot them down.
(The IDF earlier said 180 missiles had been launched from Iran towards Israel.)
President Biden and Vice President Harris monitored events from the Situation Room and they are following developments in the Middle East “minute by minute”, Sullivan continues.
Sullivan says the US will consult with Israel on next steps and is particularly focused on protecting service members in the region. He also mentions that the US has not triggered emergency evacuations for its citizens there.
Sullivan refuses to comment on questions about any retaliation from Israel or the US.
By Bianca Britton
BBC Verify has been speaking with military experts to understand which type of missiles were used in Iran’s attack on Israel.
Patrick Senft, a research coordinator at the intelligence consultancy firm Armament Research Services (ARES), tells BBC Verify that fragments suggested that ballistic missiles had been used in the attack.
Ballistic missiles reach their targets faster than common cruise missiles, he adds, and “make up the majority of the Iranian long-range strike capabilities".
Dr Thomas Karako, the director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is also confident that ballistic missiles were used.
His colleague, Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at CSIS says that the difference between today’s attack compared with Iran's attack in April is that “more missiles seem to be hitting Israel”.
He adds that ballistic missiles are harder to intercept by missile defence systems “because of their higher speed”.
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari has said that the Israeli Air Force will "strike powerfully in the Middle East" tonight.
“The Israeli and US air defence systems operated effectively" on the barrage of Iranian missiles, he says in an update.
“Iran carried out a serious act tonight and is pushing the Middle East to an escalation," he adds.
"Tonight’s event will have consequences."
Harry Farley
Political correspondent
Image source, Getty ImagesThe prime minister has condemned Iran’s attack on Israel “in the strongest terms” during a call with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu this afternoon.
Sir Keir Starmer “expressed the UK’s steadfast commitment to Israeli security and the protection of civilians” in his call with Benjamin Netanyahu, a Downing Street spokesman says.
He spoke about the importance of a ceasefire in Lebanon, Downing Street adds, and also raised the situation in Gaza.
Sir Keir also spoke with King Abdullah II of Jordan this afternoon.
“They both called for de-escalation to prevent the extreme humanitarian situation from worsening,” a Downing Street spokesman says, giving a summary of the call.
“The prime minister said he will work alongside partners and do everything possible to push for de-escalation and push for a diplomatic solution.”
Ghoncheh Habibiazad
BBC Monitoring
Image source, EPAIranian President Massoud Pezeshkian has defended Iran’s attack tonight and warned Israel in a post on X., external
Pezeshkian says that, based on Iran’s "legitimate rights" with the purpose of "peace and security for Iran and the region", a "decisive" response "in defence of Iranian interests and citizens" was given to Israel.
Addressing Netanyahu, he says the Israeli PM must know that "Iran is not a war-monger but will firmly stand against any threat".
He warns Israel that tonight’s attack was just a "glimpse" of Iran’s capabilities and not to "engage in conflict" with Iran.
Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent
Israel has an elaborate system of air defences, a system which has once again been called into action tonight.
Different elements of this "layered" system are used to dealing with different threats.
Iron Dome is the most familiar, designed to intercept short-range rockets of the sort fired by Hamas and Hezbollah over the past year.
But when it comes to bigger threats, Israel has other tools at its disposal. David's Sling is used to intercept medium to long-range rockets, as well as ballistic and cruise missiles.
And when it comes to long-range ballistic missiles, which fly outside the earth’s atmosphere, Israel has the Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 interceptors. Both have been used to bring down ballistic missiles fired by the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Israel used all elements of its air defences during Iran's last attack, in mid-April, which involved drones and cruise missiles. David's Sling and Arrow 2 and 3 will have played instrumental roles in confronting tonight's attacks.
Videos circulating on social media appear to show that a significant number of missiles got through Israel’s defences, suggesting that in some places, those defences were overwhelmed.
Last week, Israel said the US had promised a massive new package of military assistance, including $5.2bn for air defences.
