The airstrikes come just a day after Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, vowed revenge.
Israel unleashed a series of airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Thursday in one of the most intense bombardments seen since the start of cross-border hostilities with armed group Hezbollah on October 7.
Here are 10 points on the big story:
- The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that over 100 rocket launchers primed for imminent attacks on Israel were destroyed. These launchers, scattered across Hezbollah's positions in southern Lebanon, contained an estimated 1,000 rocket barrels. In addition, several Hezbollah buildings and a weapons depot were also hit.
- The airstrikes come just a day after Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, vowed revenge for what he described as a series of unprecedented and deadly attacks against Hezbollah operatives. Speaking in his first public address since these attacks, Nasrallah accused Israel of detonating communication devices belonging to Hezbollah operatives across Lebanon which resulted in 37 deaths and nearly 3,000 injuries.
- Nasrallah described the attacks as a "massacre" and warned Israel of "tough retribution and just punishment." The Hezbollah chief claimed that Israel would be struck both where it expects and where it does not. During his speech, Israeli fighter jets roared over Beirut, breaking the sound barrier.
- Israel's defence minister Yoav Gallant warned that the country was entering a "new phase in the war," indicating that the conflict, previously centred around Gaza, was now expanding to the northern border with Lebanon.
- Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has been a staunch ally of Hamas, the Palestinian group at the heart of the war in Gaza since the October 7 attack that killed over 1,200 people in Israel, mostly civilians. The conflict has now spilt over into a regional confrontation, with Hezbollah launching daily attacks against Israeli communities along the northern border, prompting retaliatory strikes from the IDF.
- The exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah along the border have triggered mass evacuations, forcing tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the border to flee their homes. Communities along Israel's northern front are now under strict military guidelines, with residents instructed to remain close to bomb shelters, avoid large gatherings, and reduce movement outside.
- "In the new phase of the war, there are significant opportunities but also significant risks," Gallant said, adding that Hezbollah "feels persecuted" and that the group would continue to pay a "heavy price" for its aggression.
- Thursday's airstrikes came after a major Hezbollah rocket barrage targeting Israel's northern communities. In Metula, a town along the Lebanese border, the damage was described as "tremendous," with homes destroyed and fires ignited by the incoming rockets. Israeli emergency services reported that no casualties were caused.
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for restraint from all parties, urging both Israel and Hezbollah to avoid actions that could further escalate the conflict. The Biden administration has been scrambling to mediate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and now faces the added challenge of preventing the conflict from spreading further across the Middle East.
- Lebanon's Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib condemned Israel's airstrikes, calling them a "blatant assault on Lebanon's sovereignty and security." He warned that the escalation risked triggering a broader regional conflict. Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowed a "crushing response" to Israel's actions.
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