A Russian plane is taking Iranians out. A mysterious flight from Beirut in the shadow of war

More than 100 Iranians, including diplomats, were evacuated on a Russian plane that left Beirut on Saturday evening, an anonymous representative of the Lebanese authorities told AFP on Sunday. So far, 394 people have been killed in the week-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The official quoted by AFP did not reveal the destination of the Russian plane. However, he added that the body of an Iranian diplomat killed during the war was also transported on the same flight, along with the bodies of his wife and three children.

The Lebanese government on Thursday banned the activities of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and introduced a visa requirement for Iranians entering the country, which is intended to hamper support for the pro-Iranian Hezbollah.

Iran-sponsored Lebanese Hezbollah, which dragged Lebanon into war with Israel on Monday, is overseen by Iranian liaison officers drawn from the IRGC.

Early Sunday morning, the Israeli army carried out an airstrike on a hotel on the Beirut waterfront. The military says the attack targeted key Quds Force commanders in the Lebanese capital.

Al-Quds is an elite IRGC unit specializing in foreign operations and supporting the Iranian “axis of resistance”, which includes, among others, Hezbollah and Shiite militias in Syria and Iraq.

The Ministry of Health in Beirut announced on Sunday that 394 people, including 83 children, have been killed so far in the week-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Israeli offensive began last week after Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel in the first days of U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran.

According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), these attacks on the Iranian side have so far killed 1,205 civilians, including 194 children. Iran's retaliatory attacks – mainly on Israel and American military installations in the Persian Gulf countries – have not caused serious damage so far. About 30 people died, including six American soldiers and 12 Israeli civilians. (PAP)

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