The Israeli army said on Wednesday that regular infantry and armored units were joining its ground operations in Lebanon, increasing pressure on Hezbollah as it prepared to retaliate against Iranian missile attacks.
Already fighting Hamas in Gaza, Israel is beefing up its presence in southern Lebanon in its conflict with Hezbollah a day after it was attacked by Iran, raising fears that the Middle East could be drawn into a larger conflict.
Iran said on Wednesday that the attack – its biggest attack on Israel – was over, barring further provocations, but Israel and the United States vowed to fight back.
Violence continued on the Israeli-Lebanese border on Wednesday.
Israel’s addition of infantry and armored troops from the 36th Division, including the Golani Brigade, the 188th Armored Brigade and the 6th Infantry Brigade, suggests that the operation may go beyond limited commando strikes.
The military said its ground operation was largely aimed at destroying tunnels and other infrastructure on the border and there were no plans for a broader operation targeting Beirut or major cities in southern Lebanon.
The Israel Defense Forces issued new evacuation orders for about two dozen towns along the southern border.
Hezbollah said on Wednesday it was clashing with Israeli troops in the border town of Maroun el-Ras after having pushed troops close to another border town. The group said it had also fired rockets at military posts inside Israel.
There was no immediate comment from Israel.
Israel renewed its bombardment on Wednesday morning of the southern suburbs of Beirut, a stronghold of the Iran-backed group, with more than a dozen air strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets.
Lebanon’s telecommunications minister, Johnny Corm, said on X that a cell phone transmission tower had been destroyed.
Despite calls for a ceasefire from the United Nations, the United States and the European Union, fighting between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah has continued.
Nearly 1,900 people have been killed and more than 9,000 injured in Lebanon in nearly a year of cross-border fighting, with the highest toll in the past two weeks, according to Lebanese government statistics. More than a million people were forced to flee their homes.
Malika Joumaa, from Sudan, was forced to take shelter in St. Joseph’s Church in Beirut after being forced to flee her home near Sidon with her husband and two children.
“It is good that the church offered its help. We were going to stay on the streets, where would we have gone? We were (sheltering) under the bridge, it’s not safe, if we go back home, it’s not safe, they are attacking everywhere.”
Risk of more violence
Iran’s state news agency said three Israeli military bases were targeted.
Ibrahim Jafari, an adviser to the General Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, said a cyber operation was launched alongside the missile strikes that hit their targets.
Iran’s military general staff said any response would be met with “vast destruction” of Israeli infrastructure.
Iran’s foreign minister said the attack was over unless Israel decided to retaliate – in which case it would respond with even more force.
Like a similar attack in April, the latest strikes caused minimal damage. A Palestinian was killed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to fight back, saying there is no place in the Islamic Republic that his country cannot reach. US news website Axios reported that retaliation within days could target oil production facilities inside Iran and other strategic locations.
On social media, Iranians were apprehensive about Israeli retaliation and said past wars, such as the eight-year conflict with Iraq in the 1980s that killed around a million people, would only bring more suffering.
“The destruction of generations, young people being cannon fodder, the enrichment of generals and elites and the empowerment of extremists? Leaders will not pay for dragging Iran into war,” said Nima Mokhtarian, who works at an NGO.
Iran’s missile attacks and Israel’s operations in Lebanon have caused alarm around the world, as Tehran’s proxies in the Middle East — Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis and armed groups in Iraq — show no respite from attacks in support of Hamas .
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Iran and Hezbollah to immediately end their attacks on Israel and warned that Tehran risks inflaming the entire region.
Russia said the conflict was intensifying in an alarming direction and Japan said it was deeply concerned about the situation.
Iran said Tuesday’s attack was a response to Israeli killings of militant leaders, including Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, and attacks in Lebanon against the group and in Gaza.
The leader of Iran’s Hamas ally, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in Tehran on July 31. The attack was widely blamed on Israel, which did not claim responsibility.
Washington said it would work with longtime ally Israel to ensure Iran faced “severe consequences” for Tuesday’s attack, which Israel said involved more than 180 ballistic missiles.
Israel activated air defenses against the bombing of Iran on Tuesday and most of the missiles were intercepted “by Israel and a US-led defensive coalition,” Israeli Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in a video on X.
This content was originally published in Israel reinforces military presence in Lebanon and promises retaliation for Iran’s attack on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
