Lebanon says 454,000 displaced registered as Israel-Hezbollah hostilities continue

BEIRUT, March 7 (Xinhua) -- The number of displaced people registered through Lebanon's government relief platform has reached about 454,000, Minister of Social Affairs Haneen Sayed said on Saturday, as Israel continues to attack several areas of the country.

According to the National News Agency, Sayed said 112,525 internally displaced people from 26,163 families are currently staying in 514 official shelter centers nationwide.

She made the remarks while inspecting emergency preparations, including converting a Beirut stadium into a shelter for registered families, set to open later Saturday.

In a separate statement on Saturday, Lebanon's Health Minister Rakan Nasreddine said the country received 15 ambulances donated by Iraq.

Nasreddine said the ambulances will be allocated to government hospitals in affected areas to help evacuate displaced patients and assist the wounded.

Meanwhile, cross-border hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah continued.

Hezbollah said it launched a swarm of attack drones targeting Israel's Haifa oil refinery, describing the operation as retaliation for Israeli attacks on dozens of Lebanese cities and towns, including Beirut's southern suburbs.

The group also said it carried out two drone strikes targeting gatherings of Israeli soldiers near the Lebanese border town of Khiam.

Israeli attacks also continued Saturday night, striking several areas in southern and eastern Lebanon as well as Beirut's southern suburbs.

Earlier in the day, Lebanon's Public Health Emergency Operations Center said the death toll from Israeli attacks since Monday has risen to 294, with 1,023 people injured. ■