Beirut: Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his country is facing one of the most dangerous stages in its history after Israel launched "limited" raids against Hezbollah targets in the border area, amid fears of an escalation of the brewing conflict in the Middle East. The Israeli military said in a statement that it had begun "limited, localised, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence" against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon villages close to the border.
"Lebanon is facing one of the most dangerous stages in its history," Mikati said during a meeting with UN organisations and ambassadors of donor countries on Tuesday. He also launched a $426 million appeal to mobilise resources for civilians affected by the escalating conflict.
This came after Israel again announced a new phase of war against Hezbollah along Lebanon's southern border, saying it would aim to bring home Israelis who have fled Hezbollah rockets during nearly a year of border warfare. It follows Israel's deadly detonation of booby-trapped Hezbollah pagers, two weeks of airstrikes, and then its killing on Friday of Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah, one of the heaviest blows in decades to the group.
Israel's offensive against Hezbollah
The intensive air strikes have eliminated several Hezbollah commanders but also killed about 1,000 civilians and forced one million to flee their homes, according to the Lebanese government. Overnight, strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs, a security source said, with journalists witnessing a flash of light and a series of loud blasts about an hour after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate areas near buildings it said contained Hezbollah infrastructure south of the Lebanese capital.
In the past 24 hours, at least 95 people had been killed and 172 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon's southern regions, the eastern Bekaa Valley, and Beirut, Lebanon's health ministry said early on Tuesday. Hezbollah's deputy leader Naim Qassem, in a first public speech on Monday since Nasrallah's death, said that "the resistance forces are ready for a ground engagement." He said Hezbollah had continued to fire rockets as deep as 150 km (93 miles) into Israeli territory.
Israel's ground raids will target Hezbollah strongholds along the border that threaten Israel, not a war against the Lebanese people, Israel's military said on Tuesday. "Hezbollah turned Lebanese villages next to Israeli villages into military bases ready for an attack on Israel," military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said. Residents in southern Lebanon fled on Monday and Tuesday as Israeli strikes drew nearer, local sources told Reuters.
Israel prepares for Lebanon invasion
Despite its biggest successes against Hezbollah in decades, Israel has indicated it is primed for a full-fledged invasion of Lebanon with the stated aim of enabling thousands of its citizens who fled Hezbollah rockets to safely return to their communities near the northern border. "Not just Hezbollah, all of Lebanon will fight this time. All of Lebanon is determined to fight Israel for the massacres it committed in Gaza and Lebanon," said Abu Alaa, a resident of the southern port city of Sidon.
Iran's allies -- from Hezbollah to Yemen's Houthis to armed groups in Iraq -- have weighed in with attacks in the region in support of Hamas in the Gaza war, raising fears the conflict will engulf the Middle East and suck in the United States and Tehran. Meanwhile, Yemen's Houthi movement targeted Israeli military posts in Tel Aviv and Eilat with drones on Tuesday, the group's military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised speech.
Russia's Kremlin has expressed concerns about Israel's incursion and strikes on Syria. "We are witnessing together that the geography of hostilities is expanding, which is further destabilizing the region and increasing tensions. These tensions are destructive to the region and the surrounding areas. We remain deeply concerned," spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said Israel should cease conducting ground raids in southern Lebanon to avoid an escalation of the conflict enveloping the region. Turkey's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that Israel's ground offensive into Lebanon was an illegal attempt at occupation that violated Lebanese territorial integrity, and added the operation must immediately end with Israel withdrawing from Lebanon.
(with agency input)
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