Elsewhere in the south, a city’s mayor was among the dead in a strike Wednesday that Lebanese officials said targeted a meeting coordinating relief efforts.

Israel has launched airstrikes on Beirut for the first time in five days, while a city mayor has been been killed during a volley of intense strikes on southern Lebanon – in what the country’s prime minister has condemned as "intentionally” targeting a municipal council meeting.

The strike, in the south of Lebanon, killed at least 16 people, Lebanese officials said. Israel, which also struck near Beirut, said it was targeting Hezbollah militants.