At least nine people died in Israel's Beit Shemesh region after Iran ramped up its offensive against Tel Aviv and US bases in the Middle East.
The latest ballistic missile strike—which is Iran's response to coordinated US-Israel airstrikes that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—struck a residential area, causing major damage to a public bomb shelter and homes in the vicinity.
A synagogue has also reportedly been destroyed.
Around 28 people have been injured, of which two are said to be in a serious condition, a Times of Israel report said, citing medics. It added that a four-year-old boy was among those injured, who was later admitted to the trauma care unit of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center.
Calling it a "difficult scene" with "great chaos" everywhere, Chaim Wingarten, Deputy Director of Operations at Jerusalem's ZAKA—who is engaged in relief operations at the site of the strike along with the city's rescue personnel—urged people to follow advisories issued by the Israeli authorities.
"I urge the public again to follow the Home Front Command’s instructions, which are life-saving ... follow them more strictly in order to prevent further casualties, God forbid," he said.
(More details are awaited.)
