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On Tuesday, Israel again strikes on Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and its Iran-backed areas with military facilities in northern Israel. This increased the fears of full-fired conflict after Lebanon suffered from the deadliest day in decades.
According to Israel’s military officials, the attack hits Hezbollah targets overnight. Additionally, Lebanese authorities claimed that the day after, airstrikes against the armed groups killed 558 people, including 94 women and 50 children and 1835 injured. Tens of thousands have struggled for safety.
Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee posted on X, “Warplanes bombed Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon in the last hour. The attack includes missile launchers, military buildings and weapon stock buildings.
On the other side, Hezbollah claimed that they targeted several Israeli military targets overnight, including an explosives factory 60 K.M. into Israel with Fadi rockets around 4 a.m. (0100 GMT). They said they had also attacked the Megiddo airfield near the northern Israeli town of Afula at three different times.
Israel is shifting its primary focus to the northern frontier after a year of War against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza on its southern border. It is the place where Hezbollah has been firing rockets against Israel in support of Hamas, which is also backed by Iranian support.
According to Rafic Hariri International Airport’s website, over 30 international flights were cancelled on Tuesday in Beirut due to the region’s rapidly increasing tensions. Qatar Airways, Turkish Airways, and some other airlines were also affected.
The number of injured has been in some Lebanese hospitals. World Health Organization officials in Lebanon said that Haifa’s main hospital had shifted their operations to an underground facility after the Israeli city was attacked on Monday.
The U.N. refugee agency’s spokesperson, Matthew Saltmarsh, shared his thoughts and said, “We’re looking at thousands. However, we are seeing that those numbers will start to rise. And the situation is extremely alarming,”
International Discussions
When asked about reports that Israel had warned people through phone messages before the strikes, a spokesperson for the U.N. human rights chief raised some concerns about the situation. Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told in a briefing in Geneva, “The ways and sources of warfare that are being used raised grave concerns about “whether you’ve sent out a warning you’re telling civilians to move, doesn’t make it OK to then strike those areas, being aware of everything that the impact on civilians will be huge….”
The fighting has raised fears that the United States, Israel’s close ally, and regional power Iran, which has proxies across the Middle East—Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis and armed groups in Iraq—will be sucked into a wider war.
The strikes have pulled pressure on Hezbollah, which suffered heavy losses last week, where thousands of pages and walkie-talkies used by its members exploded in the worst security breach ever in their history.
The operation was responsible for Israel, with a long track record of highly sophisticated operations on foreign soil.
It has neither confirmed nor challenged responsibility. Israel’s intelligence and technological resources have given it a significant advantage in both Lebanon and Gaza. It has tracked down and assassinated famous Hezbollah and Hamas leaders.
Israel’s military, the most advanced and powerful in the Middle East, said approximately 55 rockets crossed into Israel during the current attacks, with the majority intercepted. Hezbollah claimed to have struck the logistical depots of the 146th Division at the Naftali base with a rocket strike.
Threats on Regional Instability
Israel’s possible alternatives include attacking southern Lebanon and expanding airstrikes to target more of the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut, as well as Lebanese infrastructure such as bridges, highways, and the Beirut airport, which were damaged in the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. Hezbollah would most likely be a more dangerous enemy for Israel in a ground attack than Hamas.
Created in 1982 by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to oppose Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, it has extensive experience, is well disciplined, and possesses superior equipment to its Palestinian ally. However, Israel is under public pressure to protect its northern border and safely relocate citizens, laying the foundation for a long struggle. At the same time, Hezbollah promises to fight until the nearly one-year War in Gaza is over.