Christian leaders in Tyre call for international action after Israeli evacuation warning

Israeli forces struck the al-Masaken neighborhood in Tyre without warning on Tuesday morning, killing eight people and wounding 32, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. The Israeli military simultaneously issued forced evacuation orders covering the entire city, including Al Hara, the ancient Christian quarter that had until now been excluded from such orders. Israel justified the order by claiming Hezbollah militants had infiltrated the Christian district and were using it to launch attacks, though no evidence was publicly provided. Hundreds of residents fled, with vehicles packed with mattresses and belongings jamming the coastal highway for kilometers, as captured in images and video from the scene. Three senior Christian clerics — representing the Melkite Greek Catholic, Greek Orthodox, and Maronite Catholic communities — issued a joint statement calling on the international community and Lebanese officials to take immediate action to spare the old quarter, warning that any attack would constitute a humanitarian and national catastrophe. The Lebanese army had previously deployed to the Christian district to demonstrate the absence of Hezbollah armed presence there. The broader conflict has now killed at least 3,600 people in Lebanon and displaced more than 1.2 million, while Hezbollah has killed at least 30 Israeli soldiers and three civilians; Lebanon and Israel are engaged in ceasefire negotiations in Washington, though Hezbollah is not participating.