By Amina Ismail and Nidal al-Mughrabi BEIRUT/CAIRO (Reuters) -Hundreds of Beirut residents fled their homes late on Sunday after Israel said it was preparing attacks on sites linked to the financial operations of Lebanon's Hezbollah group and told people to leave those areas immediately.

Hasan, which functions as Hezbollah’s de facto banking arm but also operates as an alternative bank for Lebanese, were targeted around Beirut and across the country’s south and east.