Israeli military says it is striking Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon
By Dana Karni, Tal Shalev, Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN
(CNN) — The Israeli military said Thursday that it launched strikes on Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon in response to what it described as the group’s attempts to rebuild operations in the region.
The Israel Defense Forces’ Arabic language spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued warnings to residents of several villages in the region ahead of the strikes.
“You are located in a building used by Hezbollah. For your safety, you are requested to evacuate immediately to a distance of at least 500 meters from the building. Remaining in the vicinity of these structures endangers your lives,” Adraee said.
A US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel went into effect in November 2024, ending over a year of cross-border conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. The fighting began when the Lebanese militant group launched attacks on Israeli positions a day after the October 7, 2023 Hamas assault, in what Hezbollah said was an act of solidarity.
Under the agreement, Israel was to halt offensive operations and gradually withdraw from positions inside southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah was to pull back heavy weaponry north of the Litani River. However, Israel has continued to strike targets in Lebanon, citing Hezbollah violations of the truce, claims the group has denied.
The Israeli security cabinet is set to convene Thursday evening, according to two Israeli officials. One of the officials told CNN that Lebanon will be among the topics discussed.
The officials said Israel has been warning in recent weeks against what they described as “Hezbollah attempts to rearm and reestablish its offensive capabilities.”
Last week Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened security consultations with some cabinet ministers to discuss Israeli reactions. According to an Israeli source with knowledge of the discussion, the military recommended launching a wide scale operation against Hezbollah’s alleged rearming attempts.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar also said last week that Israel “cannot bury its head in the sand” as Hezbollah “continues to intensify its efforts to rebuild and rearm.”
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun made headlines in recent days after suggesting that his country had “no choice” but to negotiate with Israel directly.
“Lebanon has no choice but negotiation, because in politics there are three fields of action: diplomacy, economy and war. When war leads to no result, what else can be done?,” he was cited as saying by local media, widely believed to be referring to Israel.
In a statement on Thursday, Hezbollah accused Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire reached in November 2024, and of “blackmailing” the Lebanese government into recognizing Israel.
“(Lebanon) is absolutely not interested in succumbing to aggressive blackmail or being drawn into political negotiations with the Zionist enemy. Such negotiations serve no national interest and pose existential risks to the Lebanese entity and its sovereignty,” it said, affirming the group’s “legitimate right to resist occupation and aggression.”
Israel’s military action comes days after US Special Envoy Tom Barack said Lebanon was a “failed state” run by “dinosaurs.” Barrack voiced doubts about whether authorities will be able to disarm Hezbollah, which he said had more vastly more weapons than Lebanon’s armed forces.
“In our opinion, it’s not reasonable to tell Lebanon, ‘Forcibly disarm one of your political parties.’ Everybody’s scared to death to go into civil war. The idea is: What can you do to have Hezbollah not utilize those rockets and missiles,” he said.
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