The death toll from an Iranian missile attack on the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh has risen to at least eight people, marking the deadliest strike in Israel since the war began.
The Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service confirmed that eight people were pronounced dead at the scene, while 28 others sustained injuries.
Israeli police said the missile made a direct hit on a residential building, causing extensive destruction.
Dozens of rescue personnel were deployed to the site as emergency teams worked through the rubble in search of survivors.
An AFP photographer at the scene reported seeing crews recovering a body from the debris of a building that bore the brunt of the blast.
“They are bringing all kinds of equipment to try to locate people,” another AFP photographer said, noting that rescuers believed some individuals might still be trapped beneath the wreckage.
Images from the scene showed a house devastated by the explosion, with its roof collapsed into mangled concrete slabs and twisted iron bars.
Rescue operations continued as teams combed through the debris for possible survivors.
“When I arrived, I saw a terrible scene,” MDA paramedic Yehuda Shlomo said in a statement. “There was heavy structural damage, smoke in the air, and a great deal of chaos, with dozens of frightened casualties emerging from damaged buildings.”
