The Israeli Air Force has struck more than 300 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, shortly after warning residents near the terrorist group’s weapons depots to stay away from such buildings as they would be IDF targets.
“More than 300 Hezbollah sites have been attacked since Monday morning,” the army said in a statement.
The military released a picture of Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi approving the wave of airstrikes from the army’s underground command room at its Tel Aviv headquarters.
Previously, more than 150 airstrikes had been carried out in just one hour, between 6:30 am (3:30 GMT) and 7:30 am.
Israel had urged residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate homes and other buildings where it says Hezbollah has stored weapons, saying the military would carry out “extensive strikes” against the terror group.
The Lebanese health ministry said Israeli strikes in the south of the country on Monday left 100 people dead and more than 400 wounded, the worst toll in nearly a year of cross-border fighting.
“Enemy raids on towns and villages in the south since this morning have caused 100 deaths and more than 400 injuries,” the health ministry said in a statement, updating previous figures and adding that the victims included “children, women and paramedics.”
There was no sign of an immediate exodus from villages in southern Lebanon, and the warning left open the possibility that some residents might be living in or near the targeted structures without knowing they were in danger.
Residents in different villages in southern Lebanon posted photos on social media of airstrikes and large plumes of smoke. The National News Agency also reported airstrikes in different areas.
In response, Hezbollah said it fired rockets at three targets in northern Israel. “In response to the Israeli enemy’s attacks that hit the southern and western regions, [valle] In the Bekaa area, Hezbollah fighters “bombed two Israeli military positions as well as the Rafael military industrial complexes” north of the city of Haifa, the group said in a statement.
The escalation of attacks and counterattacks has raised fears of all-out war as Israel continues to battle Hamas in Gaza and seeks to return dozens of hostages taken in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. Hezbollah has vowed to continue its attacks in solidarity with Palestinians and Hamas, another Iranian-backed militant group. Israel says it is committed to restoring calm to its northern border.
Lebanon’s National News Agency said the strikes hit a forested area in the central province of Byblos, some 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of the Israel-Lebanon border, for the first time since exchanges began in October. No injuries were reported. Israel also bombed targets in the northeastern regions of Baalbek and Hermel, where a shepherd was killed and two members of his family were wounded, the news agency said. In total, 30 people were wounded in the strikes.
An Israeli military official said Israel is focused on air operations and has no immediate plans for a ground operation. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in compliance with regulations, said the strikes are aimed at curbing Hezbollah’s ability to launch further attacks against Israel.
Lebanese media reported that residents received text messages urging them to stay away from any buildings where Hezbollah stores weapons until further notice.
“If you are in a building housing weapons for Hezbollah, stay away from the village until further notice,” the message read in Arabic, according to Lebanese media.
Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makary said in a statement that his office in Beirut had received a recorded message telling people to leave the building.
“This is happening in the context of psychological warfare waged by the enemy,” Makary said, urging people “not to give the matter more attention than it deserves.”
Israel has accused Hezbollah of turning entire communities in the south into terrorist bases, complete with hidden rocket launchers and other infrastructure. That could lead the Israeli military to launch an especially intense bombing campaign, even if no ground forces are deployed.
An Israeli airstrike on a Beirut suburb on Friday killed a senior Hezbollah military commander and more than a dozen fighters, as well as dozens of civilians, including women and children.
Last week, thousands of communication devices, used mainly by Hezbollah members, exploded across Lebanon, killing 39 people and wounding nearly 3,000. Lebanon blamed Israel for the attacks, but Israel neither confirmed nor denied responsibility.
Hezbollah began firing into Israel a day after the Oct. 7 attack in what it said was an attempt to tie down Israeli forces in aiding Palestinian fighters in Gaza. Israel has responded with airstrikes, and the conflict has continued to escalate over the past year.
The fighting has left hundreds dead in Lebanon, dozens in Israel and displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the border. It has also sparked wildfires that have destroyed agriculture and left scars on the landscape.
Israel has vowed to push Hezbollah back from the border so its citizens can return home, saying it prefers to do so through diplomatic means but is prepared to use force. Hezbollah has said it will continue its attacks until a ceasefire is reached in Gaza, but this appears increasingly difficult as the anniversary of the war approaches.
Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping around 250. About 100 captives remain in Gaza. About 100 captives remain in Gaza, a third of whom are believed to have been killed, after most of the rest were released during a week-long ceasefire in November.
The Israeli offensive has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. It says women and children account for just over half of the dead. Israel claims it has killed more than 17,000 terrorists, without providing evidence.
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