Israel Strikes Lebanon As West Warns Of Escalation (Ximage@Jewtastic)
Israel conducted numerous strikes across south Lebanon following a Hezbollah strike on the town of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan heights that killed 12 people aged between 10 to 20.
Israel Defence Force (IDF) announced it targeted weapons depots and other infrastructure in Shabriha, Burj el-Shemali, near Tyre, the Beqaa Valley, and Kafr Kila, Rab Al-Thalathine, Khaim and Tayr Harfa in south Lebanon.
The Israeli strike came as Western diplomats are striving to prevent any further escalation between Hezbollah and Israel.
Hezbollah denied denied responsibility for the strike at on the town of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan heights. In a statement released, the group said, “the Islamic Resistance has absolutely nothing to do with the incident, and categorically denies all false allegations in this regard”.
Media report allege the strike to be an explosion likely caused by a stray projectile fired by Israel’s so-called Iron Dome missile system. However, Tel Aviv insisted on blaming Hezbollah for the incident.
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Yoav Gallant, Israeli minister, said the strike was “a terrible tragedy. Hezbollah is responsible for it and they will pay the price”.
Reportedly, Hezbollah and its affiliated groups have evacuated some positions in parts of Lebanon and Syria after Israel’s “terrible price” remark, said AFP. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said pro-Iran groups and Hezbollah-affiliated fighters have “evacuated their positions” south of the capital, Damascus, and in the surrounding countryside, as well as in parts of the Syrian-controlled Golan Heights, in anticipation of “potential Israeli airstrikes”, said Al Jazeera.
The escalation came amidst the growing fear of an all-out war between Hezbollah, the Lebanon based proxy group of Iran and Israel.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said caution was necessary. He stressed that Washington doesn’t want to see the conflict escalate.
As tension surge, France and Norway have called for restraint, the United Kingdom urged Hezbollah to end attacks and the US said it was working on a diplomatic solution to end the attacks “once and for all”. Egypt and Jordan have stressed the importance of supporting Lebanon.
The UN’s special coordinator for Lebanon, as well as the UN’s peace-keeping force along the Lebanese border with the occupied territories, also urged “maximum restraint” after the rocket attack.
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They said both sides must “put a stop to the ongoing intensified exchanges of fire. The also added that “It could ignite a wider conflagration that would engulf the entire region in a catastrophe beyond belief”.
Since Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7th last year, and the latter’s genocidal war on Gaza has started, Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging deadly fire.
Hezbollah has repeatedly said that they do not want a war with Israel while stressing that they are prepared in case it occurs. Israel has waged two wars against Lebanon in 2000 and 2006. and were met with strong resistance from Hezbollah, resulting in the retreat of the regime in both conflicts.
