Israel bombed Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, just hours after Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy, launched rockets and drones towards the Jewish nation.
Israel bombed Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, just hours after Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy, launched rockets and drones towards the Jewish nation. On Monday, the Lebanese armed group said that its attack on a military base near Haifa in northern Israel was in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, “in defence of Lebanon and its people” and “in response to the repeated Israeli aggressions”.
“The resistance leadership has always affirmed that the continuation of Israeli aggression and the assassination of our leaders, youth and people gives us the right to defend ourselves and respond at the appropriate time and place,” the group said in a statement, referring to the near-daily Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
“The Israeli enemy cannot continue its 15-month-long aggression without a warning response to halt this aggression and withdraw from the occupied Lebanese territories,” the statement further reads. It is pertinent to note that the latest violence marked a major escalation in what is becoming a regional war between the US and Israel on one side, Iran and its allies on the other.
The new tussle amid the Iran crisis
Hezbollah, which operates independently from the Lebanese government, has been weakened significantly after the 2024 war. It is also not clear how much damage it can inflict on Israel or whether its intervention can meaningfully alter the balance of power for Iran.
Meanwhile, Israel was quick to respond with the air strikes in southern Beirut. Local news outlets reported that Israel attacked several villages in southern Lebanon as well as the Bekaa Valley in the east of the country. In its statement, the Israeli military said it was “vigorously attacking Hezbollah” throughout Lebanon.
“The [Israeli military] will act against Hezbollah’s decision to join the campaign, and will not allow the organisation to pose a threat to [Israel] and harm the residents of the north,” it said. “The Hezbollah terror organisation is destroying the state of Lebanon. Responsibility for the escalation lies with it, and the [Israeli military] will respond forcefully to this harm,” it furthered.
The Israeli military later notified that it targeted “senior” Hezbollah members in the Beirut area and a “key” figure in south Lebanon, without providing details. Israel also called on people in more than 50 villages in south Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, including the town of Bint Jbeil, to evacuate their homes and stay at least 1km (0.6 miles) from the buildings. Overall, the tensions in Iran are trickling down to wider West Asia.
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