Israel steps up attacks on Hizbollah as the region prepares to retaliate

Israel stepped up its offensive against Iran-backed Hizbollah on Wednesday even as the region prepared to respond to a missile attack by Tehran that raised fears of an all-out war.

The Israel Defense Forces shelled strongholds of the Iran-backed rebel group in southern Beirut, while elite commando units clashed with Hizbollah fighters as they advanced on the Lebanese border.

The escalation of the war came when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to retaliate against Tehran after dozens of missiles were fired into the area. Israel.

“Iran made a big mistake — and they will pay for it,” he said Tuesday. “Whoever attacks us, we will attack them.”

the Iran’s surprise missile attackwhich they say is in response to Israel’s assassination of senior Hizbollah and Hamas leaders, has brought the region closer to a full-blown conflict as Israel escalates its offensive against proxy forces of Tehran.

In the past two weeks, Israel has assassinated Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hizbollah, launched a wave of attacks against the militant group in Lebanon, bombed a port controlled by Houthi rebels in Yemen and has been blamed for the attacks. explosion in Syria.

On Wednesday, Israeli warplanes attacked targets in southern Beirut, while the country’s forces continued the ground offensive they began against Hizbollah in southern Lebanon on Tuesday.

In its first sign of contact with Hizbollah, the group said Wednesday its fighters repelled a group of Israeli troops “trying to infiltrate” the southern community of Odeisseh, near the border.

Hours later, Hizbollah said it clashed with Israeli troops about 20km southwest of Odeisseh.

The IDF later confirmed that a 22-year-old commando was killed in combat in Lebanon, the first Israeli military fatality since the start of attacks on the country.

After Tuesday’s missile attack, the White House pledged to work with Israel to address “serious consequences” from Iran.

Only a handful of Iranian missiles made it through Israel’s sophisticated air defense systemincluding one that appeared to have struck near the headquarters of Mossad, Israel’s foreign intelligence agency.

One death was reported in the Palestinian city of Jericho, where a man was hit by debris from an intercepted missile.

A person briefed on the situation said Iran had targeted military and intelligence infrastructure near Tel Aviv and other facilities elsewhere in the country.

Iran said the attacks were in retaliation for targeted Israeli killings across the region, including Nasrallah on Friday, and threatened to respond if Israel retaliated.

“Our action will end unless the Israeli authorities decide to invite further retaliation. In that scenario, our response will become stronger and stronger,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X on Wednesday.

Araghchi said he had spoken to his British, German and French counterparts, warning that while Iran did not seek war, it was “not afraid of it”. He also called on “any third party” to refrain from intervention, an apparent reference to the United States.

On Wednesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appeared to blame the US and European countries for the escalation in the region.

“The cause of all the problems in the region is the presence of the very parties who wrongly advocate peace and stability in the region,” he said, without mentioning the missile attack by Iran enters Israel.

Hizbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif said Wednesday that its conflict with Israel would come “in waves.” “If you have beaten us in this round it is only the first time,” he said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned Iran’s missile attack on Israel on Wednesday, saying Iran risked “burning down the entire region.” “We must prevent that at all costs,” he said. “Hizbollah and Iran must immediately stop their attacks on Israel.”

On Wednesday, Israel banned United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres from entering the country for what the Foreign Ministry said was his failure to “unequivocally condemn” Iran’s missile attack.

Israeli warplanes carried out intense bombardments in Beirut and southern Lebanon on Tuesday night. According to Lebanese authorities, in the past two weeks, Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,800 people in Lebanon and forced up to 1 million people to flee their homes.

The airstrikes came after Israel issued a new evacuation order for about 20 villages and towns in southern Lebanon, which were largely deserted after days of intense airstrikes that damaged residential buildings in the areas. Dense population was flattened.

The depth of Israel’s ground offensive into Lebanon remains unclear more than a day after the Israel Defense Forces said it was conducting targeted strikes just across the country’s northern border.

The IDF said it was sending additional forces to engage in what it called “limited, localized, targeted attacks” on Lebanese territory, including troops from the Golani infantry brigade and a separate armored group.

The Israeli military has been conducting covert attacks in the area for nearly a year since Hizbollah began its assault on northern Israel the day after the October 7 attack by Hamas.

Israel said it killed two more Hizbollah commanders on Tuesday.

There were 55 deaths and 156 injuries in Israeli attacks across Lebanon on Tuesday.

In the oil market, international benchmark Brent crude was up 2.2% at $75.14 a barrel on Wednesday, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate was up 2.4% at 71.52 USD/barrel.

Prices jumped as much as 5% after the Iranian attack on Tuesday night.

Additional reporting by William Sandlund in Hong Kong, Bita Ghaffari in Tehran and Heba Saleh in Beirut