Israel will keep up military action against Lebanese Hezbollah, though the new phase of fighting does include significant risks, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Thursday. "In the new phase of the war, there are significant opportunities but also significant risks. Hezbollah feels that it is being persecuted and the sequence of military actions will continue," Gallant said in a statement. "Our goal is to ensure the safe return of Israel's northern communities to their homes. As time goes by, Hezbollah will pay an increasing price," Gallant said.
The statement from Israel came after two of its soldiers were killed in the latest Hezbollah strikes across the Lebanon border.
Deadly Israeli attacks that blew up Hezbollah radios and pagers crossed all red lines, the leader of the heavily armed Iran-backed Lebanese movement said on Thursday, as the United States called for restraint and urgent de-escalation. Lebanon and Hezbollah have blamed Israel for attacks on Hezbollah's communications equipment that killed 37 people and wounded around 3,000, overwhelming Lebanese hospitals and wreaking bloody havoc on the militant group.
Israel has not directly commented on the attacks, which security sources say were probably carried out by its Mossad spy agency, which has a long history of carrying out sophisticated attacks on foreign soil.
"There is no doubt that we have been subjected to a major security and military blow that is unprecedented in the history of the resistance and unprecedented in the history of Lebanon," Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in his TV address, filmed at an undisclosed location.
"This type of killing, targeting and crime may be unprecedented in the world," he said, appearing in front of a featureless red background in his customary black turban. The attacks "crossed all red lines", he said. "The enemy went beyond all controls, laws and morals," he said, adding the attacks "could be considered war crimes or a declaration of war."
As the broadcast was aired, deafening sonic booms from Israeli warplanes shook Beirut, a sound that has become common in recent months but has taken on a greater significance as the threat of all-out war has steadily ramped up. Hezbollah reported that airstrikes resumed in the border area in the afternoon.
The Israeli military said late on Thursday it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets, including rocket launchers and weapon depots in southern Lebanon. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his close circle of ministers for consultations, Israel's Channel 13 News reported.
(With inputs from agency)
