Hezbollah has launched waves of rockets at targets across Israel while hitting border villages with artillery fire hours after IDF troops conducted overnight raids into towns in southern Lebanon. Air raid sirens sounded across northern and central Israel this morning as air defence systems sprang into action to down the Hezbollah rockets – but some projectiles appeared to sneak through.
Pictures and videos shared to social media showed the remnants of downed projectiles lying in the streets, while smoke was seen rising from buildings struck in Hezbollah’s attacks after explosions rang out in Tel Aviv. The Lebanese group claimed it launched a barrage of Fadi 4 missiles at Israeli Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv, the IDF 8200 intelligence unit in Glilot, as well as a series of other military targets. Israel has not yet commented on the impact of the strikes, but Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the IDF’s incursion into southern Lebanon was launched to prevent Hezbollah from conducting an ‘October 7-style massacre’. ‘Hezbollah turned Lebanese villages next to Israeli villages into military bases ready for an attack on Israel,’ he said. ‘These localised ground raid raids will target Hezbollah strongholds that threaten Israeli towns, kibbutzim and communities along our border.’
But more hardline elements of Israel’s government, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, this morning called for a wider operation to ‘crush the terrorist organisation’. The Israeli military said the operations in Lebanon began on Monday night and involved the elite 98th division, which was deployed to the northern front two weeks ago from Gaza where they had been fighting against Hamas for months. It said its air force and artillery supported ground troops engaged in ‘limited, localised, and targeted ground raids’ against Hezbollah in southern Lebanese villages. The ground operation, which comes nearly a year on from Hamas’ October 7 attacks, was given the green light yesterday, three days after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was confirmed dead following a devastating attack in Beirut. Meanwhile, Israel’s air force continued to pound targets across Lebanon with brutal airstrikes, while also hitting Damascus in Syria and various locations in Gaza.
Dystopian images that emerged early this morning showed Israeli flares and munitions lighting up the night sky in southern Lebanon, softening up Hezbollah positions in preparation for the IDF incursion. Following the overnight raids, IDF officials this morning called on residents in more than 20 areas in southern Lebanon to evacuate their homes, signalling more ground operations were imminent. ‘The IDF (Israeli military) does not want to harm you, and for your own safety you must evacuate your homes immediately. Anyone who is near Hezbollah members, installations and combat equipment is putting his life in danger,’ army spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X. The military advised people to evacuate north of the Awali River, some 36 miles (60km) from the border and much farther than the Litani River, which marks the northern edge of a UN-declared zone that was intended to serve as a buffer between Israel and Hezbollah after their 2006 war.
Hezbollah however denied Israeli troops had entered Lebanon at all, casting doubt on the situation on the ground. In its first statement since Israel announced the start of ground operations, the Lebanese group’s spokesman Mohammed Afif dismissed what he said were ‘false claims’ of an Israeli incursion, simply stating that his forces ‘were ready’ to respond to an invasion. Israel has dealt heavy blows to Hezbollah in the past two weeks. It successfully pulled off a ruthless covert operation that saw thousands of rigged communication devices explode in the hands of Hezbollah members, and proceeded to launch a devastating campaign of airstrikes. Hezbollah chief Nasrallah – a towering figure who turned the group into Lebanon’s top military and political force – was assassinated last week along with several other senior commanders in one of those strikes. Now, Israel has indicated it is primed for a full-fledged invasion of Lebanon, with the stated aim of enabling thousands of its citizens who fled Hezbollah rockets to safely return to their communities near the northern border.
The deployment of boots on the ground overnight to conduct raids on southern Lebanese villages closest to the border represents a significant escalation in Israel’s war against its enemy to the north. The IDF said that its incursion, dubbed ‘Operation Northern Arrows’, will continue ‘according to the situational assessment and in parallel to combat in Gaza and in other arenas’. Officials warned Lebanese citizens not to drive south of the Litani river to avoid being caught up in fighting or airstrikes. The IDF’s incursion into southern Lebanon came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stark warning to Iran, whom Hamas and Hezbollah are both backed by. He said: ‘There is nowhere in the Middle East Israel cannot reach. There is nowhere we will not go to protect our people and protect our country.’ Hezbollah’s acting leader, Naim Kassem, said Monday the group will fight any Israeli troops who try to occupy parts of Lebanon.
Lebanon’s prime minister meanwhile said his country was facing ‘one of the most dangerous phases of its history’, urging the United Nations to provide aid for one million people displaced by Israeli air strikes. ‘Around a million of our people have been displaced because of the devastating war that Israel is waging on Lebanon,’ the National News Agency reported Najib Mikati as saying. ‘We urgently call for more aid to reinforce our ongoing efforts to provide basic support to displaced civilians,’ he added in a meeting with UN representatives. Mikati later this morning launched an appeal for more than $400 million in aid to address the humanitarian crisis unfolding in his country in coordination with the UN humanitarian agency OCHA said. The US said it was informed beforehand about Israel’s raids, which have been described as ‘limited operations focused on Hezbollah infrastructure near the border.’ The invasion is said to have forced Lebanese troops to retreat three miles from their positions along the counrty’s southern border with Israel. Meanwhile, the Lebanese health ministry said early this morning that 95 people had been killed in Israeli strikes in the past day, with another 172 injured.
An overnight Israeli strike in Lebanon targeted Mounir Maqdah, commander of the Lebanese branch of the Palestinian Fatah movement’s military wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, according to two Palestinian security officials. The strike hit a building in the crowded Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the southern city of Sidon, the sources said, adding the militant commander’s fate was unknown. In Syria, three civilians were killed and nine others injured in an Israeli airstrike on the capital Damascus, Syrian state media said on Tuesday citing a military source. As the Israeli bombardment continued into the night, residents living in southern Beirut were ordered to evacuate ‘immediately’. ‘You are located near interests and facilities belonging to the terrorist Hezbollah, and therefore the IDF will act against them forcefully,’ IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on X. ‘For your safety and the safety of your family, you must evacuate the buildings immediately, starting at a distance of no less than 500 meters.’
The intensive air strikes of the past two weeks have eliminated several Hezbollah commanders but also killed about 1,000 civilians and forced one million to flee their homes, according to the Lebanese government. British nationals have been urged to leave Lebanon immediately, with Foreign Secretary David Lammy warning the conflict could ‘escalate in a major way’. Lammy told reporters on Monday night: ‘I have been urging since coming to office in July for British nationals to leave Lebanon. And indeed the previous government from October 2023 was urging UK nationals not to travel to Lebanon. ‘Notwithstanding that we sent a rapid response team. 700 troops are in Cyprus. We will do all we can to assist people to get out. ‘We have secured places on commercial flights that are flying tomorrow so that UK nationals can get out.’ Asked what he would say to British nationals who have not yet taken his advice, he said: ‘I urge them to leave because the situation on the ground is fast moving. ‘While we will do everything we can to protect British nationals and those plans are in place to do so, we cannot anticipate the circumstances of the speed with which we could do that If things escalate in a major way over the coming hours and days.’
The UK Government has chartered a commercial flight out of Lebanon for Britons wanting to leave amid escalating violence. The flight is due to leave Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport on Wednesday and vulnerable British nationals and their spouses, partners and children under 18 will be prioritised, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said. Mr Lammy said: ‘The situation in Lebanon is volatile and has potential to deteriorate quickly. ‘The safety of British nationals in Lebanon continues to be our utmost priority. ‘That’s why the UK Government is chartering a flight to help those wanting to leave. It is vital that you leave now as further evacuation may not be guaranteed.’ Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire almost every day since the war in Gaza began. The fighting has displaced tens of thousands of people in Israel and Lebanon. Israel says it will continue to strike Hezbollah until it is safe for Israelis displaced from border communities to return to their homes.
Hezbollah has promised to keep firing rockets into Israel until there is a cease-fire in Gaza. Early on Monday, Hezbollah vowed to keep fighting even after its longtime leader Nasrallah and other top officials were recently wiped out by Israeli strikes. Giving his first address since the group’s leader was killed, deputy Naim Qassem said: ‘Hezbollah’s front will continue, everyone on the battlefield is ready and, despite the losing of our leader and commanders, we will not move aside nor will we forsake our duty in support of Gaza and in defence of Lebanon,’ he said. ‘If the Zionists enter Lebanon, we are ready and prepared for a ground battle, and we will be victorious.’ Israel’s order restricting entry and exit from the northern communities of Metula, Misgav Am and Kfar Giladi does not necessarily mean Israeli troops will invade Lebanon immediately. Areas can also be declared closed military zones if an imminent threat is detected. But the Israeli army has heavily beefed up forces along the border with Lebanon in recent days. Israeli strikes have killed Nasrallah and six of his top commanders and officials in the last 10 days. They have also hit what the military says are thousands of militant targets across large parts of Lebanon.
Over 1,000 people have been killed in the country in the past two weeks, nearly a quarter of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry. Early Monday, an airstrike hit a residential building in central Beirut, killing three Palestinian militants, as Israel appeared to send a clear message that no part of Lebanon is out of bounds. Despite the heavy blow Hezbollah has suffered in recent weeks, acting leader Naim Kassem said in a televised statement that if Israel decides to launch a ground offensive, the group’s fighters are ready. He said the commanders killed have already been replaced. Nasrallah’s longtime deputy, Kassem will remain in his acting position until the group’s leadership elects a replacement. The man widely expected to take over the top post is Hashem Safieddine, a cousin of Nasrallah who oversees Hezbollah’s political affairs. Hezbollah’s capabilities are unclear after a series of major blows Hezbollah has significantly increased its rocket attacks in the past week to several hundred daily, but most have been intercepted or fallen in open areas.
Several people have been wounded in Israel. There have been no fatalities since two soldiers were killed near the border on Sept. 19. But Hezbollah’s capabilities remain unclear. As recently as two weeks ago, a strike like Monday’s in central Beirut – outside of the main areas where Hezbollah operates and next to a busy transportation hub normally crowded with buses and taxis – would have been seen as a major escalation and likely followed by a long-range Hezbollah strike into Israel. But the unspoken rules of the long-running conflict no longer seem to be in effect. It’s possible Hezbollah is holding back to save resources for a bigger battle. But the militant group might also be in disarray after Israeli intelligence apparently penetrated its highest levels. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, meeting with Israeli troops Monday, said Israel would ‘use all the capabilities we have,’ hinting at a ground operation. Some European countries began pulling their diplomats and citizens out of Lebanon on Monday.
Germany, which has been calling on its citizens to leave Lebanon since October 2023, sent a military plane to evacuate diplomats’ relatives and others. Bulgaria sent a government jet to get the first group of its citizens out, with priority given to families with children and vulnerable groups. In the past week, Israel has frequently targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence, including the massive strike Friday that killed Nasrallah. But it had not hit locations closer to the city center. Monday’s strike killed three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small, leftist faction that has not been meaningfully involved in months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel has not claimed the strike but is widely assumed to have carried it out. Also Monday, Hamas announced that its top commander in Lebanon, Fatah Sharif, was killed with his family in an airstrike on the Al-Buss refugee camp in the southern port city of Tyre. The Israeli military confirmed it had targeted him.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Sharif was an employee, and was put on administrative leave without pay in March as it investigated allegations about his political activities. Israel has accused the agency, known as UNRWA, of links to Palestinian militant groups, while the agency says it is committed to neutrality and works to prevent any such infiltration. Hezbollah began firing rockets, drones and missiles into northern Israel after Hamas’ October 7 attack from Gaza into Israel sparked the war in the Palestinian territory. Hezbollah and Hamas are allies and both supported by Iran, and Hezbollah said it would continue the attacks in solidarity with the Palestinians until there was a cease-fire in Gaza. Israel responded to the rockets with airstrikes in Lebanon, and the fighting has steadily escalated over the past year. The Lebanese government says the fighting may have displaced up to a million people, although the UN estimate is around 200,000.
Tens of thousands of Israelis have also been displaced. Israel has vowed to keep fighting until the attacks stop and its citizens can return home. Israel shows little interest in cease-fire calls as it bloodies a longtime foe. The United States and its allies have called for a cease-fire, hoping to avoid further escalation that could draw in Iran and set off a wider war. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has shown little interest, as his country racks up military achievements against a longtime foe. France, which has close ties to Lebanon, has joined the United States in calling for a cease-fire. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, visiting Beirut Monday, urged Israel to refrain from a ground offensive. Barrot also called on Hezbollah to stop firing on Israel, saying the group ‘bears heavy responsibility in the current situation, given its choice to enter the conflict.’
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, speaking after meeting with Barrot, said the country is committed to an immediate cease-fire followed by the deployment of Lebanese troops in the south, in keeping with a U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 war but was never fully implemented. Hezbollah, which boasts tens of thousands of battle-hardened fighters and long-range missiles capable of hitting anywhere inside Israel, has long been seen as the most powerful militant group in the region and a key partner to Iran in both threatening and deterring Israel. But Hezbollah has never faced an onslaught quite like this one, which began with a sophisticated attack on its pagers and walkie-talkies in mid-September that killed dozens of people and wounded around 3,000 – including many fighters but also many civilians.
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