Israel Drops Leaflets Over Beirut Threatening Gaza-Scale Devastation

Israel dropped leaflets over Beirut warning Lebanon it could suffer devastation on the scale of Gaza, and Israeli officials framed such pressure as a means to force Hezbollah’s disarmament.

“Israel has destroyed a bridge in southern Lebanon and dropped leaflets over Beirut warning the country faces the same scale of destruction visited upon Gaza, as its military campaign against Hezbollah enters a devastating new phase”

Al Jazeera

Defence Minister Israel Katz said, “The Lebanese government ... will pay increasing costs through damage to infrastructure and loss of territory,” while the leaflets explicitly invoked Israel’s two-year Gaza campaign: “In light of the great success in Gaza, the newspaper of the new reality arrives to Lebanon,” the flyer said.

Al Jazeera

Multiple outlets noted the aircraft drops and the explicit warnings to the Lebanese public.

The leaflet campaign coincided with what several outlets described as the first overt Israeli acknowledgement of strikes on Lebanese civilian infrastructure in this offensive.

Al Jazeera reported that the Zrarieh Bridge over the Litani River was struck after the Israeli military said Hezbollah used it to move fighters.

Al-Jazeera Net

Multiple sources noted a drone hit an apartment block in Beirut’s Bourj Hammoud—events observers linked to an expansion of targeting into new areas of the capital.

The campaign has coincided with heavy Lebanese civilian tolls and mass displacement, though reporting shows inconsistent counts.

“The Iranian Revolutionary Guard today, Friday, launched a series of attacks on Israel and numerous sites in countries across the region, vowing to "bury American soldiers wherever they are — in hotels and shelters”

Al-Jazeera Net

Al Jazeera cited Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health saying Israeli attacks had killed at least 773 people and wounded 1,933, with more than 800,000 displaced.

BBC reporting on March 12 cited a Lebanese toll of 687 dead including 98 children and said nearly 700,000 people were displaced; other outlets also reported figures within that range, underscoring both the scale of destruction and differences in official tallies.

Israeli leaders signalled a broader escalation, warning Lebanon’s government to disarm Hezbollah or face expanded operations on the ground while Israel reinforced northern forces.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Lebanon it was “playing with fire” and said “if you do not do so, it is clear that we will.”

Alma Research and Education Center

Defence Minister Israel Katz spoke of imposing increasing costs, and reporting also described a troop buildup and rhetoric framing parts of southern Lebanon as a potential operational zone.

The leaflets also carried recruitment and pressure elements aimed at Lebanese citizens.

““Commanders need agile, independent, dead-on legal advice that enables decisive action, not endless process or turf wars,” Hegseth said in a video posted to X”

Associated Press News

Outlets reported a second flyer calling on the Lebanese to strip Hezbollah of its weapons, and some drops included QR codes linking to messaging apps and social platforms inviting contact from those “who want to see ‘real change’.”

Associated Press News

This illustrates a psychological and informational dimension alongside kinetic strikes.