Tensions are escalating once again between Israel and Hezbollah, as strikes between the two have been launched [Getty/file photo]
The Israeli military announced early on Sunday that it was conducting pre-emptive strikes in Lebanon after detecting preparations for “large-scale” attacks by the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
The military also warned Israelis to expect incoming missiles and drones launched by Hezbollah.
In an Arabic-language message addressed to the residents of southern Lebanon, the military said: “We are monitoring Hezbollah’s preparations to carry out large-scale attacks on Israeli territory near your homes. You are in danger. We are attacking and eliminating Hezbollah threats.
“Anyone who is near areas where Hezbollah operates should leave immediately to protect themselves and their families,” the message posted on Telegram continued.
Lebanon-based Hezbollah announced a large-scale rocket and drone launches towards Israel in an “initial response” to a top commander’s killing, after Israel’s military said it was carrying out a series of pre-emptive strikes against the group.
“In the context of the initial response” to the killing of its commander Fuad Shukr last month, Hezbollah said it “began an air attack with a large number of drones” targeting deep into Israel, a statement from the group said. Fighters also targeted “a number of enemy positions and barracks and Iron Dome platforms… with a large number of rockets”, it said, adding the “military operations will take some time to complete”.
In a separate statement released shortly before 5:00 am (0100 GMT), the military said its jets were striking targets in Lebanon “that posed an imminent threat” to Israelis.
Announcing the strikes in a video released at the same time, military spokesman Daniel Hagari said that “Hezbollah will soon fire rockets, and possibly missiles and UAVs, towards Israeli territory”.
“From right next to the homes of Lebanese civilians in the south of Lebanon, we can see that Hezbollah is preparing to launch an extensive attack on Israel, while endangering the Lebanese civilians” he added, urging civilians there “to move out of harm’s way”.
“Hezbollah’s ongoing aggression risks dragging the people of Lebanon, the people of Israel, and the whole region into a wider escalation.”
Prime Minister Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would hold a security cabinet meeting at 0400 GMT, his office said.
Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport announced that flights were being delayed and diverted on Sunday morning, while the country’s emergency service group said was raising its level of alert.
Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged cross-border fire on a near-daily basis, one day after Tel Aviv launched its military offensive on Gaza on October 7.
Over 500 Lebanese have been killed since, mostly Hezbollah fighters but also civilians. Fighting between the two has intensified following a strike blamed on Hezbollah on the occupied Golan Heights town of Majdal Shams in late July, and Israel’s killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut soon after.
