Even as Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah vowed “revenge” for device explosions in Lebanon allegedly by Israel which killed at least 37 people, Israeli military launched a series of airstrikes on south Lebanon, further escalating the conflict between the warring groups.
In one of the most intense strikes since the war began nearly a year ago, Israeli jets, over two hours, struck hundreds of multiple-rocket-launchers in south Lebanon, which, Israel claimed, were set to be fired towards it.
There were more than 5o strikes, Lebanon's state news agency NNA said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The airstrikes came close on the heels of pager and walkie-talkie explosions in Lebanon which killed 37 and wounded over 3,000. Condemning the attacks, Nasrallah had said that Israel had “crossed all red lines”.
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Asserting that Israel will not be able to return its citizens to the northern part of the country, Nasrallah had warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “No military escalation, no killings, no assassinations and no all-out war can return residents to the border.”
“Let the enemy know what happened did not shake our faith, conviction, resolve, preparedness or infrastructure. On the contrary, this turned us more resolved, more robust and more adamant. If the Israeli’s objective was to separate us from what’s taking place in Gaza, it failed," he added.
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Since Hamas' October 7 attacks on southern Israel, the Israeli leadership under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said it is determined to remove the threat of Hezbollah, which has operated in solidarity with Hamas.
Though Israel is yet to comment on the device detonations in Lebanon, the Lebanese mission to the UN said in a letter to the Security Council that Israel was responsible for the attacks. The 15-member Security Council is due to meet today over the attacks.
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Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards Commander Hossein Salami told Nasrallah that Israel will face "a crushing response from the axis of resistance", referring to a coalition of groups including Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthis, Hamas and armed groups in Iraq and Syria.
US urges restraint
The White House called for an urgent diplomatic solution to the conflict between the Hezbollah and Israel. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said the US is "afraid and concerned about potential escalation".
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged restraint, and warned against “escalatory actions by any party” which would make the ongoing discussions on Gaza-ceasefire more difficult.
Britain, too, called for an immediate ceasefire.