Israel's military has warned residents to evacuate communities in southern Lebanon that are outside the United Nations-declared neutral zone, signaling it will expand a ground offensive launched earlier this week against Hezbollah, the militant group that is also party political and which controls most of southern Lebanon.
Israeli forces said they hit about 200 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, including weapons depots and checkpoints. Airstrikes continued overnight and there were a series of massive explosions on the outskirts of Beirut.At least nine Israeli soldiers have been killed in clashes with Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, where Israel launched what it said was a limited ground offensive earlier this week.
Lebanon's state news agency said "more than 10 consecutive attacks" hit targets on the outskirts of Beirut, saying the latest attacks were "among the most powerful" since Israel launched its offensive in Lebanon.Hezbollah has been declared a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing, but not its political party.
In recent weeks, Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and several senior commanders. Hundreds of other airstrikes in various parts of Lebanon since mid-September have killed at least 1.276 people, according to Lebanon's Ministry of Health.
Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged fire on an almost daily basis in the border area since October last year, when the war in Gaza began between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian group designated a terrorist organization by the US and the EU.