Conflict in the Middle East | Building destroyed by Iranian missile in Israel

(Haïfa) Two people were found dead in the rubble of a building in Haïfa, in the north of Israel, hit on Sunday by an Iranian missile, firefighters and rescuers said on Monday, while searches continued to find two missing people.

Rescuers “found two people trapped under the rubble without any sign of life,” said a spokesperson.

“Rescue operations are continuing at this time, to try to find two other people who are currently still trapped or out of contact,” he added.

The Israeli army had previously mentioned, in a video statement published on the Telegram network, “four people missing” and “many others injured”.

At nightfall, several hours after the strike which occurred around 6 p.m. (11 a.m. Eastern time), searches were carried out by the light of searchlights in the smoking rubble of the building, located in a residential area of Haifa, noted an AFP correspondent. Â

The Magen David Adom (MDA), the Israeli equivalent of the Red Cross, reported four injured, including one seriously, an octogenarian. A 10 month old baby was also affected. The seven-story building was almost completely destroyed, according to AFP images.

Firefighters had previously indicated that three people were missing.

The building was hit “by a direct missile impact,” an army official told AFP. Asked whether it was an Iranian missile, he replied “yes.” The strike occurred minutes after the army announced that it had detected missile fire from Iran.

“When we arrived on the street, we saw a multi-story building that had been hit, with significant damage on site. Residents present told us that there were injured people trapped under the rubble on the lower floors,” testified Shevach Rothenshtrych, one of the MDA rescuers.

“We managed to move large blocks of concrete with our hands and extract from the rubble an 82-year-old man, seriously injured, but conscious,” he added, specifying that the man had been transported to the hospital. His life is not in danger, according to hospital sources.

Two women aged 77 and 38, as well as a 10-month-old baby, hit in the head, were slightly injured by shards and the blast of impact, said the MDA.