Lebanon said four people were killed and 23 injured in an Israeli strike on central Beirut on Saturday, as rescue operations continued hours after a residential building was razed.

On Saturday morning, footage showed an excavator removing the rubble of the eight-story building hit at around 4:00 a.m., with a fire truck and civil defence rescuers nearby while people gathered around the site.

"The Israeli enemy strike on Basta al-Fawqa in Beirut killed four people and injured 23 others," the ministry said in a statement, giving a preliminary toll.