British Airways and Air France on Sunday suspended flights to Tel Aviv, after the biggest clashes between Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah armed group since the start of the war in Gaza.

BA said it was suspending its flights to and from Tel Aviv until Wednesday, while the French carrier suspended services to Tel Aviv and Beirut scheduled for Sunday and Monday.

"We've been continually monitoring the situation in the Middle East and have taken the operational decision to suspend our flights to and from Tel Aviv up to and including Wednesday 28 August," a spokesman for BA said.

Waking at dawn on Sunday to explosions and sirens, Abigail Levy checked the news and quickly understood there had been "an escalation" of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

She stepped outside to find the Israeli port city of Haifa in a "very sad" state after the military announced it had carried out air strikes in Lebanon to thwart a large-scale attack by the Iran-backed militants.

"There was no one outside. Everything was closed, whereas usually there would be a lot of people and activity here," she said.

The coastal city's beaches are typically crowded during the summer, but with drones and rockets raining down near the border 30 kilometres (18 miles) away, Israeli authorities on Sunday declared a 48-hour state of emergency.

Britain on Sunday called for restraint in the Middle East, after the largest clashes between Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah armed group since the start of the war in Gaza.

"Further escalation in the Middle East must be avoided at all costs," British Foreign Secretary David Lammy posted on X, following a call with Israel's minister of strategic affairs, Ron Dermer. "I reiterated the UK's support for Israel's security, the importance of restraint, the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all hostages."

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah denied Sunday that the Israeli military destroyed thousands of the group's rocket launchers.

"Talk about how the resistance (Hezbollah) was going to launch 8,000 or 6,000 rockets and drones and that (Israel) thwarted this... are false claims", Nasrallah said in a televised speech, adding that only "dozens of rocket launchers" were destroyed.

The Israeli army said Hezbollah failed to strike a military intelligence base near Tel Aviv that the Lebanese armed group's leader said was the target of a rocket and drone barrage on Sunday.

"I can confirm that there were no hits at the Glilot base," a spokesperson for the Israeli military told AFP.

The United States helped track the barrage of rockets and drones launched by Hezbollah against Israel, but was not involved in strikes in Lebanon or in shooting down incoming projectiles, a US defense official said.

"The US was not involved in Israel's preemptive strikes last night. We did provide some ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) support in terms of tracking incoming Lebanese Hezbollah attacks, but did not conduct any kinetic operations as they were not required," the official said on condition of anonymity.

"We continue to closely monitor the situation and remain well-postured and ready to support the defense of Israel from attacks by Iran and any of its proxies," the official added.

The Israeli military said a navy soldier was killed and two others wounded in combat in northern Israel Sunday, after the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets at Israel.

"Petty Officer First Class, David Moshe Ben Shitrit, aged 21... fell during combat in northern Israel," the military said in a statement, adding that he was from the navy and that two others were also wounded. It did not give further details.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned against further regional escalation on Sunday in a meeting with the United States' highest-ranking general, as cross-border hostilities between Israel and Lebanon intensified.

Sisi "warned of the dangers of a new front opening in Lebanon and stressed the necessity of preserving Lebanon's stability and sovereignty", according to a statement from the president's office.

His meeting in Egypt with US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Charles "CQ" Brown, the United States's highest-ranking military officer, came hours after Israel launched air strikes on Lebanon.

Israel said it was pre-empting an attack on its territory from Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, fuelling fears of a wider regional conflagration.

Hezbollah, which has exchanged fire with Israeli forces since October, last went to war with Israel in 2006 and has since expanded its domestic and regional influence, politically and militarily.

Financed and armed by Iran, Hezbollah is the most prominent actor in the so-called axis of resistance -- regional pro-Tehran armed groups opposed to Israel that also include Palestinian group Hamas, Iraqi movements, and Yemen's Huthi rebels. Read more

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Sunday's strikes in Lebanon were "not the final word" in his country's military campaign against Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

"We are striking Hezbollah with surprising, crushing blows... This is another step towards changing the situation in the north and safely returning our residents to their homes. And, I repeat, this is not the final word," Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting.

He said the military destroyed thousands of "short-range rockets, all of which were intended to harm our civilians and forces in the Galilee".

"Additionally, the IDF (Israeli military) intercepted all the drones that Hezbollah launched at a strategic target in central Israel," he said, without identifying what the target was.

Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Sunday hailed strikes by Lebanon's Hezbollah against Israel, calling it a "strong and focused response".

"We emphasize that this strong and focused response, which struck deep inside the Zionist entity, is a slap in the face" for the Israeli government, Hamas said in a statement after Hezbollah said it launched a large-scale operation using rockets and drones.

Beirut airport was functioning Sunday but many passengers were stuck as flights were cancelled or delayed, an AFP correspondent said, after Israel and Hezbollah announced broad strikes in an escalation of cross-border hostilities.

"We came at 4:30 am (0130 GMT) for our flight at 8:00 am but they told us it was cancelled," said Elham Shukair, a passenger headed to the United States via Jordan.

Seated on her bag in the arrivals hall, she said she had booked another flight later Sunday with Lebanon's Middle East Airlines in the hope of reaching Amman and making her onward connection.

Air France said Sunday it was suspending flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut for at least 24 hours after Israel launched air strikes into Lebanon.

"Flights today and tomorrow are suspended," a spokesman for the airline said, adding that the suspension could be extended depending on the situation in the Middle East.

The United Nations and Lebanon's prime minister urged de-escalation Sunday after Israel struck Lebanon and Hezbollah said it launched attacks on Israeli positions, in a major escalation of cross-border hostilities.

The office of the UN special coordinator for Lebanon and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) "call on all to cease fire and refrain from further escalatory action", a joint statement said, describing the latest developments as "worrying".

"A return to the cessation of hostilities, followed by the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1701, is the only sustainable way forward," the statement added.

The resolution ended a 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah and called for the Lebanese army and United Nations peacekeepers to be the only armed forces deployed in south Lebanon.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels praised attacks by Lebanon's Hezbollah on Israel Sunday and renewed threats to launch their own attack in response to Israeli strikes on a port in Yemen.

"We congratulate Hezbollah and its Secretary-General on the great and courageous attack carried out by the resistance this morning against the Israeli enemy," said a Houthi statement, adding that a response to July 20 strikes by Israel on the rebel-run Hodeida port "is definitely coming".

Hezbollah has said its military operation against Israeli positions has been "completed" and "accomplished".

Israeli "claims of pre-emptive action it carried out... and the thwarting of the resistance's attack are empty claims", the group said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed "to do everything" to ensure the security of residents of northern Israel after the military launched air strikes against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.

"We are determined to do everything to protect our country, return the residents of the north safely to their homes and continue to follow a simple rule: whoever hurts us, we hurt them," Mr Netanyahu said in a video statement in Hebrew.

מי שפוגע בנו - אנחנו פוגעים בו. pic.twitter.com/KsoHJbhsCx

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) August 25, 2024

Israeli military has said that about 100 fighter jets struck and "eliminated" thousands of Hezbollah rocket launcher barrels, which were "aimed for immediate fire" toward northern and central Israel.

"More than 40 Hezbollah launch areas were struck," the military said on X, adding it will do "whatever is needed to defend" Israeli civilians and Israel.

Approx. 100 IAF fighter jets struck and eliminated thousands of Hezbollah rocket launcher barrels, aimed for immediate fire toward northern and central Israel.
More than 40 Hezbollah launch areas were struck.
We will do whatever is needed to defend our civilians and the State… pic.twitter.com/1nuuo9NEZj

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) August 25, 2024

Pictures show smoke and fire on the Lebanese side of the border with Israel, after Israeli military said it had noted armed group Hezbollah preparing to attack Israel and had carried out pre-emptive strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.

Photo Credits: Reuters

Hezbollah said Sunday it had launched more than 320 rockets at Israel overnight, targeting a string of military positions.

Israel's Civil Aviation Authority has announced the resumption of flights to and from the country's main international airport after a brief suspension as the Israeli military struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.

Operations at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv resumed at 0400 GMT, a spokesperson said, adding that "planes diverted to other airports will also take off from Ben Gurion again."

Israel Defence Miniser Yoav Gallant has briefed US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin on the Hezbollah attacks.

"We have conducted precise strikes in Lebanon in order to thwart an imminent threat against the citizens of Israel," Mr Gallant told Mr Austin, according to an official statement.

"We are closely following developments in Beirut, and we are determined to use all the means at our disposal in order to defend our citizens.”

The statement also said that the two leaders "discussed the importance of avoiding regional escalation".

Israel has announced a 48-hour nationwide state of emergency after its launched what it called pre-emptive strikes in Lebanon.

"The declaration on the state of emergency enables the IDF (Israeli military) to issue instructions to the citizens of Israel, including limiting gatherings and closing sites where it may be relevant," Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said, in a statement issued by his office.

"I am convinced that there is a high probability of an attack against the civilian population in areas of the country where the declaration of a special situation did not apply," he said, referring to previous local emergency measures.

"I hereby declare a special situation on the home front in other areas of the country. The situation is valid for 48 hours starting at 6:00 am (0300 GMT)," Mr Gallant said.

With Middle East tensions flaring up, Israeli Prime Minister Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a security cabinet meeting today.

The Pentagon has said that the United States was "postured to support" the defense of Israel after its military announced it was conducting pre-emptive strikes in Lebanon after detecting attack preparations by Hezbollah.

"We continue to closely monitor the situation and have been very clear that the US is postured to support the defense of Israel," a Pentagon spokesperson said in a statement.

Hezbollah has said the "first phase" of attack on Israel has ended with "total success". The Iran-backed group said that this phase sought to "target Israeli barracks and positions to facilitate the passage of attack drones towards targets" deep inside Israel.

Hezbollah has said it launched more than 320 rockets at Israel overnight, targeting a string of military positions.

"The number of Katyusha rockets launched until now is more than 320... towards enemy positions," a Hezbollah statement said, adding it had targeted 11 Israeli bases and barracks. 

Israel today said it launched strikes inside Lebanon as a "self-defence act" to prevent a Hezbollah attack on its civilians. 

"In a self-defense act to remove these threats, the Israeli Defense Force is striking terror targets in Lebanon, from which Hezbollah was planning to launch their attacks on Israeli civilians," military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a video statement.

“In a self-defense act to remove these threats, the IDF is striking terror targets in Lebanon, from which Hezbollah was planning to launch their attacks on Israeli civilians.”
Listen to an update from IDF Spokesperson, RAdm. Daniel Hagari, regarding Hezbollah’s plans to attack… pic.twitter.com/fKvbUVSmbT

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) August 25, 2024

Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel both announced large-scale military operations against each other. Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon, said it has launched several explosive drones, targeting key Israeli military sites. Hezbollah said it has launched "more than 320" Katyusha rockets at Israel. 

In response, the Israeli military said it has initiated pre-emptive strikes on targets in Lebanon. The Israeli military said it had detected preparations by Hezbollah for "large-scale" attacks on Israeli territory.