MASSIVE AIRSTRIKES ROCK LEBANON: At Least 254 Killed in Israel's Largest Attack Since Hezbollah War Began

Warplanes levelled several buildings in the centre of Beirut, filling the skies with smoke in what Israel's defence minister said was 'a surprise strike' on the pro-Iranian group Hezbollah.

The Lebanese capital was filled with cars crumpled by the blasts and the flaming wreckage of buildings that first responders struggled to extinguish, as Israel bombed more than 100 Hezbollah military sites around the country.

Hospitals in Lebanon put out urgent calls for blood donations, while the ministry of health urged people to 'clear the streets' so ambulances could reach the injured.

People rushed home to check on their families. A man was filmed as he ran towards a struck building in the Chiyah neighbourhood, screaming: 'There are people inside!'

'I have a friend in this building, Mahmoud. I don't know where he is. He's not answering his phone. We need to stop this war, it's getting ridiculous,' said Shaden Fakih, a 24-year-old calisthenics trainer who was present when an Israeli strike brought down a building in the Barbour neighbourhood of central Beirut.

The Israeli Defence Minister, Israel Katz, said the two theatres - Iran and Lebanon - were separate and said the aim was to 'change the reality in Lebanon and remove threats from the residents of the north.'