Israel had urged residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate from homes and other buildings where it claimed Hezbollah has stored weapons, saying the military would conduct “extensive strikes”
Israel warned civilians to “get out of Lebanon now” just before a “huge attack” struck 300 targets – as it steps up pressure against the Hezbollah militant group.
On Monday, Israel had urged residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate from homes and other buildings where it claimed Hezbollah has stored weapons, saying the military would conduct “extensive strikes” against the militant group.
The army then announced the strikes on the social media platform X, posting a photo of what is said was the military chief, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, approving additional attacks from military headquarters in Tel Aviv.
It is one of the most intense barrages of airstrikes in nearly one year of fighting against Hezbollah. Halevi and other Israeli leaders have promised tougher action against Hezbollah in the coming days.
As Israel was carrying out the attacks, Israeli authorities reported a series of air-raid sirens in northern Israel warning of incoming rocket fire from Lebanon.
The increasing strikes and counterstrikes have raised fears of an all-out war, even as Israel is still battling Hamas in Gaza and trying to return scores of hostages taken in Hamas’ October 7 attack. Hezbollah has vowed to continue its strikes in solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas, a fellow Iran-backed militant group. Israel says it is committed to returning calm to its northern border.
Associated Press journalists in southern Lebanon reported heavy airstrikes targeting many areas Monday morning, including some far from the border.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said the strikes hit a forested area in the central province of Byblos, about 130 kilometers (81 miles) north of the Israeli-Lebanese border, for the first time since the exchanges began in October.
No injuries were reported there. Israel also bombed targets in the northeastern Baalbek and Hermel regions, where a shepherd was killed and two family members were wounded, according to the news agency. It said a total of 30 people were wounded in strikes.
The Lebanese Health Ministry asked hospitals in southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa valley to postpone surgeries that could be done later. The ministry said in a statement that its request aimed to keep hospitals ready to deal with people wounded by “Israel’s expanding aggression on Lebanon.”
