Israel has carried out an air strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, targeting a senior Hezbollah commander, an Israeli military spokesperson said.

The Israeli army said that the attack on Tuesday was in retaliation for an attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday that killed 12 children and teenagers.

Hezbollah, which has denied involvement in Saturday’s strike, informed mediators it would still respond to any Israeli attack, a Hezbollah official said in written comments sent to reporters.

Since the weekend attack, Beirut had braced for Israeli strikes and countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and France had urged citizens to leave Lebanon or avoid travelling there.

Many airlines have cancelled flights to Beirut.

This was the latest escalation in an almost 10-month-long conflict between Israel and Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.