Israel launches ground operations in southwest Lebanon

2024-10-08 12:30:06, Kosova & Bota CNA

Israel's military said on Tuesday it has launched ground operations in southwest Lebanon, expanding its incursion into a new area, a year after exchanges of fire with the Hezbollah militant group began.

Regional tensions, fueled a year ago by an attack on southern Israel by Hamas — the Palestinian group designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union — have escalated into Israeli ground and air operations in Lebanon and direct attacks by Iran against Israel. .

Iran warned Israel on Tuesday against launching any attacks against the Islamic republic, a week after Tehran fired a barrage of missiles at it, putting the Middle East on edge.

Any attack on Iran's infrastructure will be met with retaliation, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said, warning Israel not to attack his country.

In Lebanon, the Israeli military stepped up pressure on Iran-backed Hezbollah, saying it was carrying out "limited, localized and targeted operations" in southwest Lebanon, after conducting similar operations in southeast Lebanon in recent weeks.

Hezbollah, which controls southern Lebanon, has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing but not its political party.

The Israeli military bombed the southern suburbs of Beirut overnight and said it killed a senior Hezbollah official who was in charge of the group's budget and logistics.

If confirmed, the killing of Hussein Husseini would be the latest in a series of assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas leaders and commanders by Israel.

The United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon and the head of the UN peacekeeping mission in the country said on Tuesday that their repeated calls for restraint have "fallen on deaf ears" since the firefight between Hezbollah and Israel began. .

"Today, one year later, almost daily exchanges of fire have escalated into a relentless military campaign with catastrophic humanitarian impact," they said in a joint statement.

The attacks have raised fears that the US, Israel's closest ally, and Iran will become embroiled in a wider conflict in the oil-producing Middle East.

Tensions between arch-enemies Iran and Israel have reached a peak after years of covert warfare and assassinations that have turned into direct confrontations that have put the region on edge.

Israel is considering options to respond to last week's ballistic missile attack by Tehran, carried out in response to Israel's military actions in Lebanon.

US news site Axios quoted Israeli officials as saying Iran's oil facilities could be hit, which would be a serious escalation that could raise global oil prices.

Israeli airstrikes have displaced 1.2 million people in Lebanon, and Israel's intensified bombing campaign has many Lebanese worried that their country will experience widespread destruction like that inflicted by Israel in Gaza.

About 2,000 Lebanese have been killed since Hezbollah and Israel began exchanging attacks a year ago. Most of them have been killed in recent weeks.

The Israeli army has described its ground operation in Lebanon as localized and limited, but has begun to gradually expand it since last week./ REL