The guns were supposed to have fallen silent.
It was, after all, just hours after US President Donald Trump had announced that a two-week ceasefire had been agreed to halt the war in the Middle East.
But just as the region was breathing a sigh of relief, Israeli jets conducted a 10-minute blitz across Lebanon - a massive aerial attack that killed at least 203 people and wounded more than 1,000 others, according to Lebanon's health ministry.
Local and Western condemnation was swift and widespread, but no criticism came from the US against its ally in this war.
Iran said this was a grave violation of the ceasefire deal and has asked the US to halt the Israeli aggression.
Lebanese officials say more than 1,700 people have been killed since Israel launched its latest campaign in Lebanon last month. Israel has said its operations are aimed at weakening Hezbollah and achieving what it calls remaining military objectives.
The war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February - prompting retaliation from Tehran against US allies in the Gulf, and from Iran's proxies - Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - against Israel.
In response, Israel began striking Hezbollah and even ordered its troops to occupy large parts of Lebanon.
The two-week pause in the fighting was announced by Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif - who has been serving as mediator between the warring parties. Sharif said the US and its allies have agreed to an immediate ceasefire everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere.
Iran's plan insists on a cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including against the resistance of Lebanon - a reference to its Shia ally in Lebanon.
But the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the ceasefire did not include Lebanon.
Donald Trump also said Lebanon was not part of the deal because of Hezbollah. According to him the war in Lebanon is a separate skirmish.
Around 14:00 in Beirut (11:00 GMT) the skies over Lebanon darkened.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that within 10 minutes it had completed the largest coordinated strike across Lebanon since the start of Operation Roaring Lion - the code name for the Israeli operation against Iran.
It said it had targeted 100+ Hezbollah headquarters, military arrays, & command-and-control centres in Beirut, Bekaa and southern Lebanon.
Densely populated parts of central Beirut were hit in strikes described by officials as among the heaviest since Hezbollah joined the conflict in early March. Casualties were reported in the Bekaa Valley, in the east, and in the southern Nabatieh, Sidon and Tyre regions.
Hezbollah may have been taken by surprise - their only response appeared to have been with rockets fired towards Israel hours later.
On Thursday, Israel continued its attacks, claiming it had killed 70+ terrorists and also claimed to have ELIMINATED: Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary to Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem in Beirut. The BBC is unable to verify the claims.
At some locations, search and recovery operations are still under way, as Prime Minister Nawaf Salam described the casualties as martyrs and wounded and President Joseph Aoun labeled the airstrikes as a massacre.
Even though Israel says it targeted Hezbollah, it knew that this would inevitably lead to a high number of casualties.
In Lebanon, opponents and supporters of Hezbollah are coming together in anger, united in the view that what happened here was unacceptable and unjustifiable.
It was, after all, just hours after US President Donald Trump had announced that a two-week ceasefire had been agreed to halt the war in the Middle East.
But just as the region was breathing a sigh of relief, Israeli jets conducted a 10-minute blitz across Lebanon - a massive aerial attack that killed at least 203 people and wounded more than 1,000 others, according to Lebanon's health ministry.
Local and Western condemnation was swift and widespread, but no criticism came from the US against its ally in this war.
Iran said this was a grave violation of the ceasefire deal and has asked the US to halt the Israeli aggression.
Lebanese officials say more than 1,700 people have been killed since Israel launched its latest campaign in Lebanon last month. Israel has said its operations are aimed at weakening Hezbollah and achieving what it calls remaining military objectives.
The war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February - prompting retaliation from Tehran against US allies in the Gulf, and from Iran's proxies - Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - against Israel.
In response, Israel began striking Hezbollah and even ordered its troops to occupy large parts of Lebanon.
The two-week pause in the fighting was announced by Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif - who has been serving as mediator between the warring parties. Sharif said the US and its allies have agreed to an immediate ceasefire everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere.
Iran's plan insists on a cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including against the resistance of Lebanon - a reference to its Shia ally in Lebanon.
But the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the ceasefire did not include Lebanon.
Donald Trump also said Lebanon was not part of the deal because of Hezbollah. According to him the war in Lebanon is a separate skirmish.
Around 14:00 in Beirut (11:00 GMT) the skies over Lebanon darkened.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that within 10 minutes it had completed the largest coordinated strike across Lebanon since the start of Operation Roaring Lion - the code name for the Israeli operation against Iran.
It said it had targeted 100+ Hezbollah headquarters, military arrays, & command-and-control centres in Beirut, Bekaa and southern Lebanon.
Densely populated parts of central Beirut were hit in strikes described by officials as among the heaviest since Hezbollah joined the conflict in early March. Casualties were reported in the Bekaa Valley, in the east, and in the southern Nabatieh, Sidon and Tyre regions.
Hezbollah may have been taken by surprise - their only response appeared to have been with rockets fired towards Israel hours later.
On Thursday, Israel continued its attacks, claiming it had killed 70+ terrorists and also claimed to have ELIMINATED: Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary to Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem in Beirut. The BBC is unable to verify the claims.
At some locations, search and recovery operations are still under way, as Prime Minister Nawaf Salam described the casualties as martyrs and wounded and President Joseph Aoun labeled the airstrikes as a massacre.
Even though Israel says it targeted Hezbollah, it knew that this would inevitably lead to a high number of casualties.
In Lebanon, opponents and supporters of Hezbollah are coming together in anger, united in the view that what happened here was unacceptable and unjustifiable.
