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
We've just had another update from Israel's military, saying Iran's missile attack on the country is continuing.
"You are requested to remain in a protected space until further notice. The explosions you are hearing are from interceptions or fallen projectiles," the statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continues.
It says the military is "currently identifying and intercepting launches".
Footage of Iranian missiles entering Israel is beginning to reach us.
The video below shows several flying over Tel Aviv, in central Israel:
Iran fires missiles over Tel Aviv
Iran's state-run news agency IRNA has now confirmed that Tehran's military has started launching ballistic missiles towards Israel.
Two interceptions have been heard by colleagues in our Middle East bureau in Jerusalem.
It comes a short while after the Israeli military said Iran had launched missiles towards Israel.
We can bring you more now from the Israeli military, which said moments ago that Iran had launched missiles towards Israel.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) urges Israelis to "remain alert and precisely follow the home front command's instructions".
"Upon hearing a siren, you must enter a protected space and remain there until further notice", it adds.
A short while ago, missiles were launched from Iran towards Israel, the Israeli military says in a statement.
It adds that sirens have sounded all across Israel.
Image source, Israel Defense ForcesThe IDF shared a graphic showing the locations of the air raid alerts issued across Israel in the past few minutes
Jo Floto
Middle East bureau chief in Jerusalem
A report was received a short time ago regarding a shooting incident in Tel Aviv.
There are multiple casualties, according to the police spokesperson unit there.
The initial suspicion of motive is terror, they add.
More on this shortly.
Tom Bateman
Reporting from the US State Department
The sense I’m picking in this building is one of urgency - a belief that the indication is an Iranian missile strike on Israel is imminent, possibly within hours.
The US has issued a “shelter in place” notice for US staff and their families at their embassy buildings in Israel.
One other point - the statements coming from White House officials carry a warning that I didn’t pick up quite so explicitly in the run up to Iran’s April strike on Israel.
This time the unnamed officials warn Iran explicitly of “severe consequences” for Iran in the event of a direct military attack on Israel. That’s very ominous.
My sense from the administration is that they’re messaging to the Iranians that this time, there won’t be the same effort by Washington to try to rein in any Israeli retaliation.
Image source, ReutersRescuers workers near the scene of a strike in southern Beirut
Air raid sirens have sounded across central Israel, warning of possible incoming rocket fire.
We'll bring you more detail on this as we have it.
Image source, ReutersUN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is "extremely concerned with the escalation of the conflict in Lebanon", a statement from his spokesperson says.
Guterres appeals for an immediate ceasefire and says an "all-out war" in the country must be avoided at all costs.
"The sovereignty and territorial integrity of Lebanon must be respected," the statement adds.
Earlier, Guterres told the prime minister of Lebanon that the UN is "mobilised to assist all those in need in the country", according to the statement.
Separately, the EU has renewed its call for an immediate ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel.
European Commission Vice President Josep Borrell says in a post on X that further military intervention would "dramatically aggravate" the situation.
At BBC Verify, as well as looking at southern Lebanon, we have been reviewing footage from Beirut as locals look through the debris following a night of Israeli strikes.
Last night, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) warned Beirut residents to evacuate three locations in the capital's southern suburbs, claiming the sites were home to Hezbollah facilities.
Image source, IDFThe IDF later published a night-vision video showing the same buildings being struck from above.
BBC Verify has looked into all three locations and has so far verified video from two of the three sites - in the suburbs of Daheih and Beir Al Abed.
Video showed extensive damage - with streets filled with rubble and debris, and an entire building appears to have collapsed.
Image source, TelegramDahieh, Lebanon, 1 October 2024
We identified the location of the footage by matching neighbouring buildings and their roofs to satellite imagery. It also matches the location that was outlined by the IDF in their graphic.
While these videos show the accuracy of the IDF's targeting, BBC Verify cannot independently confirm — based on the imagery we've seen — whether those buildings were being used by Hezbollah.
Image source, ReutersWe're hearing now from Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who says the US is "tracking events in the Middle East very closely".
"The United States is committed to Israel’s defence. We’re watching developments, as I said, very carefully at this moment," he says ahead of a meeting in Washington.
It comes as a senior White House official warns the BBC's US partner CBS it has indications Iran plans to launch an imminent ballistic missile attack on Israel.
An attack from Iran on Israel could be as large or larger than the attack it launched on 13 April, US officials tell the BBC's US partner CBS News.
Iran has been ready to launch at attack on short notice since early August, when it threatened to retaliate for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the officials say.
As a reminder, in April Iran launched a barrage of missiles towards Israeli territory. Some 99% of the missiles were intercepted by Israel and its allies, including the US and the UK.
Faisal Islam
Economics editor
The price of a barrel of crude oil shot up on international markets in response to news that the White House believes Iran is preparing a ballistic missile attack on Israel.
The US traded WTI measure was up 3% to above $70 (£53) a barrel. Brent crude traded above $73 (£55) a barrel.
Over the past year, energy markets have had a remarkably calm response to rising tensions in the Middle East, even after the Houthi embargo on Red Sea cargo ships.
The principal fear has always been of an escalation that would lead to Tehran blocking the Straits of Hormuz, and key exports of crude oil from the Gulf.
That fear is now playing out in markets, just at the moment when the world’s central banks were starting to declare the inflationary shocks of the past three years as over.
Of particular concern is that Europe is now dependent on flows not just of oil but of LNG - shipped frozen gas from Qatar - which also have to pass through the strait which is just 20 miles wide at its narrowest point.
The Russia-Ukraine war had made Europe dependent on the global LNG market.
Oil prices are still well down on where they were earlier this year, but two simultaneous geopolitical crises evoke memories of the inflationary era in the 1970s.
We can bring you more updates from Lebanon now.
Hezbollah says it has launched missiles towards an Israeli air base.
In a post on Telegram, it says it has targeted the Sde Dov air base on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.
Image source, ReutersIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged Israelis to heed the safety instructions of the home front command, as a White House official warns an Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel could be imminent.
In a video address to the nation, Netanyahu says Israel is "in the midst of a campaign against Iran's axis of evil".
He says Israel is "determined" to return its residents to their homes in the north, but adds "great challenges" lie ahead.
Netanyahu urges Israelis to "strictly follow the directives" the military's home front command and to "stand together".
"Together we will fight and together we will win," he adds.
Image source, Israel Defense ForcesIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Daniel Hagari says that at this time Israel has not identified any aerial threat being launched from Iran.
It comes after a White House official told the BBC's US partner CBS that the US had indications that Iran was preparing to launch a ballistic missile attack "imminently".
Hagari adds that the IDF is on a high state of alert.
“We have dealt with this type of threat before, and we will deal with it now as well,” he says.
A senior White House official now tells the BBC's US partner CBS that the US has indications that Iran is preparing to "imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel".
"A direct military attack from Iran against Israel will carry severe consequences for Iran," the official warns, adding that the US is supporting "defensive preparations to defend Israel against this attack".
Some more breaking news now.
The Israel Defense Forces says it is targeting Beirut in a post on X, without providing further detail.
We'll bring you more as we have it.