Tel Aviv city hall lit up with Lebanese flag in show of solidarity after deadly blast

“Our hearts and thoughts are with the Lebanese people and all those affected by the terrible disaster in Beirut,” the Tel Aviv Municipality tweeted.

By Algemeiner Staff

The facade of Tel Aviv’s city hall was illuminated with the Lebanese flag on Wednesday night — a show of solidarity with the Jewish state’s neighbor to the north following the deadly explosion in Beirut that killed at least 135 people and wounded thousands more.

“Our hearts and thoughts are with the Lebanese people and all those affected by the terrible disaster in Beirut,” the Tel Aviv Municipality tweeted.

Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai tweeted, “Humanity comes before any conflict, and our hearts are with the Lebanese people following the terrible disaster they experienced.”

Israel quickly offered humanitarian relief to Lebanon after Tuesday’s blast.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry tweeted, “At the direction of FM @Gabi_Ashkenazi and Defense Min. Gantz, Israel via security and international channels has offered humanitarian medical assistance to the government of Lebanon.”

On Wednesday, it was reported that the possibility of Israeli hospitals taking in foreigners wounded in the Beirut explosion was being considered.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted on Wednesday, “On behalf of the government of Israel, I send my condolences to the people of Lebanon. Yesterday Lebanon suffered a major catastrophe. We are ready to offer humanitarian assistance, as human being to human beings.”

Israel has fought two major wars in Lebanon over the past four decades, the most recent taking place in the summer of 2006, when the IDF engaged in a 33-day-long conflict with Hezbollah — Iran’s Shi’a terror proxy based in the country’s south.

Some Israelis took issue with the Tel Aviv Municipality’s gesture. Cabinet minister Rafi Peretz — head of the right-wing Jewish Home party — tweeted, “Raising an enemy state’s flag in the heart of Tel Aviv is moral confusion.”