Middle East conflict: Israel striking more Hezbollah targets in Lebanon as ground incursion suggested

The Israeli military has conducted another round of extensive strikes against targets of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon and suggested a ground incursion may be needed to secure its war goals.

The strikes constituted the most geographically widespread bombing that Israel has simultaneously carried out since its conflict with Hezbollah began nearly a year ago in parallel with the war on Gaza.

Israel’s military began carrying out fresh strikes against Hezbollah positions in Lebanon on Monday after identifying that the Iran-backed group was preparing to attack Israel, a military spokesperson says.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the military had issued a message to residents of south Lebanon to keep their distance from Hezbollah posts.

He said Israel began striking Hezbollah posts in Lebanon after identifying an intention to fire on Israel.

Asked by reporters about a possible Israeli ground incursion into Lebanon, Hagari said “we will do whatever is needed” in order to return evacuated residents of northern Israel to their homes safely.

He gave no further details of the strikes but Reuters witnesses say Israeli warplanes carried out an intense wave of air strikes on towns along Lebanon’s southern border and even further north on Monday morning.

Reuters reporters in the southern port city of Tyre could hear warplanes flying low over southern Lebanon and hear a series of air strikes nearby.

Hezbollah’s al-Manar television reported Israeli airstrikes targeting the outskirts of many towns and villages in the south and the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon. Footage showed columns of smoke rising over the south.

Hezbollah and Israel exchanged heavy fire into Sunday, as the Lebanese militant group sent rockets deep into northern Israeli territory after facing intense bombardment.

Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem told mourners at the funeral of one of the group’s commanders killed last week in Beirut: “We have entered a new phase, the title of which is the open-ended battle of reckoning.”

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said operations would continue until it was safe for evacuated people on his side of the border to return - also setting the stage for a long conflict as Iran-backed Hezbollah has vowed to fight on until a ceasefire in the parallel Gaza war.

The conflict - which has escalated sharply in the past week - has raged since Hezbollah opened a second front against Israel, saying it was acting in support of Palestinians facing an Israeli offensive further south in Gaza.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah members exploded.

The attack was widely blamed on Israel, which has not confirmed or denied responsibility.