Large explosion shakes Hezbollah stronghold in south Beirut

People in southern Beirut say a large explosion has shaken a Hezbollah stronghold and triggered a fire.

The nature of the blast early Sunday was not immediately clear. Some residents said it may have been caused by an Israeli drone that went down in the area.

Israeli warplanes fly over Lebanon regularly and have struck inside neighboring Syria from Lebanese airspace on numerous occasions.

A few hours earlier, late Saturday, the Israeli military attacked targets near Syria’s capital of Damascus in what it said was a successful effort to thwart an imminent Iranian drone strike on Israel, stepping up an already heightened campaign against Iranian military activity in the region.

Residents of the Beirut district rocked by the explosion say the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group sealed off the area.