Israel unleashes deadly strikes on Lebanon

The Israeli military says it attacked “terrorist” infrastructure in Lebanon on Wednesday, amid spiking regional tensions. 

Hezbollah reported four of its fighters were killed in Lebanon that evening in cross-border fire with Israel. 

Members of the Shiite political and militant group were killed in what Lebanon’s state media said was an Israeli airstrike. 

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency accused Israel of bombing a three-storey house, destroying it completely. The attack also injured nine civilians, it reported.

Attacks from Lebanon into Israel were also reported on Wednesday. 

Israel vows to hunt down Hamas leaders

The head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence service, David Barnea, warned on Wednesday that the agency would hunt down every Hamas member involved in the 7 October attack on Israel – no matter where they are.

Barnea said Mossad is “committed to settling accounts with the murderers who raided the Gaza envelope,” referring to the area of southern Israel that Hamas attacked. 

He also vowed to pursue everyone involved, “directly or indirectly,” including “planners and envoys.”

His comments came just one day after the deputy head of Hamas, Saleh al-Arouri, was killed in a suspected Israeli strike in Beirut.

He is the most senior Hamas member to be killed since the war in Gaza erupted nearly three months ago.

Israel has refused to comment on reports it carried out the killing, but Barnea’s remarks appeared to be the strongest indication yet that it was behind the blast.

Hezbollah prepared to ‘fight back’

Hezbollah and the Israeli military have been exchanging fire almost daily over the Israeli-Lebanese border since the war in Gaza began.

The Shiite militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah has so far appeared reluctant to escalate it further. 

However, in a speech on Wednesday evening, he promised revenge for the suspected Israeli strike in Beirut, repeating his group’s statement that “this dangerous crime” of al-Arouri’s killing will not go “without response and without punishment.”

Nasrallah avoided specifics on any possible reprisal for the senior Hamas official’s killing, though he vowed to address the issue further in a speech Friday.

But he did that if Israel attacked Lebanon, it would be in the national interest to fight back. 

“If the enemy thinks about launching a war against Lebanon, then we will fight back without ceilings and without limits,” he warned.

The remarks highlight the risk that the strike could tip low-intensity fighting along the Lebanon border into all-out war.

Hezbollah boasts an arsenal of tens of thousands of rockets and missiles as well as different types of drones.

The United States has sought to prevent any widening of the conflict, including by deploying two aircraft carriers and other military assets to the region. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was expected in the region this week.

Israel seeks ‘clear victory’ in Gaza

The focus of the war, however, remains on Gaza.

Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has said his country is seeking a “clear victory” over Hamas, which has ruled the besieged territory since 2007.

Israel’s air, ground and sea offensive in Gaza has killed more than 22,300 people, two-thirds of them women and children, according to Palestinian authorities. 

The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

The war has forced some 85% of Gazans from their homes, pushing hundreds of thousands of people into overcrowded shelters or refugee camps in Israeli-designated safe areas that the military has nevertheless bombed.

A quarter of Gaza’s population faces starvation, according to the United Nations, as Israeli restrictions and heavy fighting hinder aid delivery.

Still, Israel appears far from achieving its goals of crushing Hamas and returning the estimated 129 hostages still held by the group.

Heavy fighting is also underway in central Gaza and the southern city of Khan Younis, where Israeli officials say Hamas’ military structure is still largely intact.