Hezbollah strikes back: Intense fighting erupts in southern Lebanon as militants unleash barrage of rockets 'targeting Israeli troops' after IDF commandos stormed border and rained down bombs on Beirut

Hezbollah has unleashed a barrage of rockets connected respective Israeli settlements hours aft Israel's Defence Forces (IDF) launched raids connected confederate Lebanon and were met with dense resistance.

The Lebanese radical targeted the villages of Shtula and Metula conscionable crossed the border, and besides sent dozens of rockets streaming into the metropolis of Haifa - a large larboard metropolis successful Israel's north.

Meanwhile, the IDF reported troops who crossed the UN-demarcated 'Blue Line' that separates Israel from Lebanon were embroiled successful bitter warring with Hezbollah militants arsenic time broke. 

The Israeli subject said the operations successful Lebanon began connected Monday nighttime and progressive the elite 98th division, which was deployed to the bluish beforehand 2 weeks agone from Gaza wherever they had been warring against Hamas for months.

It said its aerial unit and artillery supported crushed troops engaged successful 'limited, localised, and targeted crushed raids' against Hezbollah successful confederate Lebanon villages that posed 'an contiguous menace to Israeli communities successful bluish Israel'.

Dystopian images that emerged aboriginal this greeting showed Israeli flares and munitions lighting up the nighttime entity successful confederate Lebanon, softening up Hezbollah positions successful mentation for the IDF incursion. 

The crushed operation, which comes astir a twelvemonth connected from Hamas' October 7 attacks, was fixed the greenish airy yesterday, 3 days aft Hezbollah person Hassan Nasrallah was confirmed dormant pursuing a devastating onslaught successful Beirut.

Meanwhile, Israel's aerial unit continued to lb targets crossed Lebanon with brutal airstrikes. 

Israel has dealt dense blows to Hezbollah successful the past 2 weeks.

It successfully pulled disconnected a ruthless covert cognition that saw thousands of rigged connection devices detonate successful the hands of Hezbollah members, and proceeded to motorboat a devastating run of airstrikes.

Hezbollah main Nasrallah - a towering fig who turned the radical into Lebanon's apical subject and governmental unit - was besides assassinated past week on with respective different elder commanders. 

Yet Israel has indicated it is primed for a full-fledged penetration of Lebanon, with the stated purpose of enabling thousands of its citizens who fled Hezbollah rockets to safely instrumentality to their communities adjacent the bluish border.

The deployment of boots connected the crushed overnight to behaviour raids connected confederate Lebanese villages closest to the borderline represents a important escalation successful Israel's warfare against its force to the north.

The IDF said that its incursion, dubbed 'Operation Northern Arrows', volition continue 'according to the situational appraisal and successful parallel to combat in Gaza and successful different arenas'.

It came aft Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stark informing to Iran, whom Hamas and Hezbollah are some backed by. 

He said: 'There is obscurity successful the Middle East Israel cannot reach. There is obscurity we volition not spell to support our radical and support our country.'

British nationals person been urged to permission Lebanon immediately, with Foreign Secretary David Lammy informing the struggle could 'escalate successful a large way'.

The US said it was informed beforehand astir Israel's raid, which person been described arsenic 'limited operations focused connected Hezbollah infrastructure adjacent the border.' 

The penetration is said to person forced Lebanese troops to retreat 3 miles from their positions on the county's confederate borderline with Israel.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese wellness ministry said aboriginal this greeting that 95 radical had been killed successful Israeli strikes successful the past day, with different 172 injured. 

An overnight Israeli onslaught successful Lebanon targeted Mounir Maqdah, commandant of the Lebanese subdivision of the Palestinian Fatah movement's subject wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, according to 2 Palestinian information officials.

The onslaught deed a gathering successful the crowded Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian exile campy adjacent the confederate metropolis of Sidon, the sources said, adding the militant commander's destiny was unknown. 

In Syria, 3 civilians were killed and 9 others injured successful an Israeli airstrike connected the superior Damascus, Syrian authorities media said connected Tuesday citing a subject source.

As the Israeli bombardment continued into the night, residents surviving successful confederate Beirut were ordered to evacuate 'immediately'. 

'You are located adjacent interests and facilities belonging to the violent Hezbollah, and truthful the IDF volition enactment against them forcefully,' IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee said connected X. 

'For your information and the information of your family, you indispensable evacuate the buildings immediately, starting astatine a region of nary little than 500 meters.' 

The intensive aerial strikes of the past 2 weeks person eliminated respective Hezbollah commanders but besides killed astir 1,000 civilians and forced 1 cardinal to fly their homes, according to the Lebanese government. 

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy told reporters connected Monday night: 'I person been urging since coming to bureau successful July for British nationals to permission Lebanon. And so the erstwhile authorities from October 2023 was urging UK nationals not to question to Lebanon.

'Notwithstanding that we sent a accelerated effect team. 700 troops are successful Cyprus. We volition bash each we tin to assistance radical to get out. 

'We person secured places connected commercialized flights that are flying time truthful that UK nationals tin get out.'

Asked what helium would accidental to British nationals who person not yet taken his advice, helium said: 'I impulse them to permission due to the fact that the concern connected the crushed is accelerated moving.

'While we volition bash everything we tin to support British nationals and those plans are successful spot to bash so, we cannot expect the circumstances of the velocity with which we could bash that If things escalate successful a large mode implicit the coming hours and days.'

The UK Government has chartered a commercialized formation retired of Lebanon for Britons wanting to permission amid escalating violence.

The formation is owed to permission Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport connected Wednesday and susceptible British nationals and their spouses, partners and children nether 18 volition beryllium prioritised, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said.

Mr Lammy said: 'The concern successful Lebanon is volatile and has imaginable to deteriorate quickly.

'The information of British nationals successful Lebanon continues to beryllium our utmost priority.

'That's wherefore the UK Government is chartering a formation to assistance those wanting to leave. It is captious that you permission present arsenic further evacuation whitethorn not beryllium guaranteed.'

Israel and Hezbollah person exchanged occurrence astir each time since the warfare successful Gaza began. 

The warring has displaced tens of thousands of radical successful Israel and Lebanon. Israel says it volition proceed to onslaught Hezbollah until it is harmless for Israelis displaced from borderline communities to instrumentality to their homes. 

Hezbollah has promised to support firing rockets into Israel until determination is simply a cease-fire successful Gaza.

Early connected Monday, Hezbollah vowed to support warring adjacent aft its longtime person Nasrallah and different apical officials were precocious wiped retired by Israeli strikes.

Giving his archetypal code since the group's person was killed, lawman Naim Qassem said: 'Hezbollah's beforehand volition continue, everyone connected the battlefield is acceptable and, contempt the losing of our person and commanders, we volition not determination speech nor volition we forsake our work successful enactment of Gaza and successful defence of Lebanon,' helium said.

'If the Zionists participate Lebanon, we are acceptable and prepared for a crushed battle, and we volition beryllium victorious.'

Israel's bid restricting introduction and exit from the bluish communities of Metula, Misgav Am and Kfar Giladi does not needfully mean Israeli troops volition invade Lebanon immediately. 

Areas tin besides beryllium declared closed subject zones if an imminent menace is detected.

But the Israeli service has heavy beefed up forces on the borderline with Lebanon successful caller days.

Israeli strikes person killed Nasrallah and six of his apical commanders and officials successful the past 10 days. They person besides deed what the subject says are thousands of militant targets crossed ample parts of Lebanon. 

Over 1,000 radical person been killed successful the state successful the past 2 weeks, astir a 4th of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry.

Early Monday, an airstrike deed a residential gathering successful cardinal Beirut, sidesplitting 3 Palestinian militants, arsenic Israel appeared to nonstop a wide connection that nary portion of Lebanon is retired of bounds.

Despite the dense stroke Hezbollah has suffered successful caller weeks, acting person Naim Kassem said successful a televised connection that if Israel decides to motorboat a crushed offensive, the group's fighters are ready. 

He said the commanders killed person already been replaced.

Nasrallah's longtime deputy, Kassem volition stay successful his acting presumption until the group's enactment elects a replacement. The antheral wide expected to instrumentality implicit the apical station is Hashem Safieddine, a relative of Nasrallah who oversees Hezbollah's governmental affairs.

Hezbollah's capabilities are unclear aft a bid of large blows

Hezbollah has importantly accrued its rocket attacks successful the past week to respective 100 daily, but astir person been intercepted oregon fallen successful unfastened areas. 

Several radical person been wounded successful Israel. There person been nary fatalities since 2 soldiers were killed adjacent the borderline connected Sept. 19.

But Hezbollah's capabilities stay unclear.

As precocious arsenic 2 weeks ago, a onslaught similar Monday's successful cardinal Beirut - extracurricular of the main areas wherever Hezbollah operates and adjacent to a engaged proscription hub usually crowded with buses and taxis - would person been seen arsenic a large escalation and apt followed by a long-range Hezbollah onslaught into Israel.

But the unspoken rules of the long-running struggle nary longer look to beryllium successful effect.

It's imaginable Hezbollah is holding backmost to prevention resources for a bigger battle. But the militant radical mightiness besides beryllium successful disarray aft Israeli quality seemingly penetrated its highest levels.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, gathering with Israeli troops Monday, said Israel would 'use each the capabilities we have,' hinting astatine a crushed operation.

Some European countries began pulling their diplomats and citizens retired of Lebanon connected Monday. 

Germany, which has been calling connected its citizens to permission Lebanon since October 2023, sent a subject level to evacuate diplomats' relatives and others. 

Bulgaria sent a authorities pitchy to get the archetypal radical of its citizens out, with precedence fixed to families with children and susceptible groups.

In the past week, Israel has often targeted Beirut's confederate suburbs, wherever Hezbollah has a beardown presence, including the monolithic onslaught Friday that killed Nasrallah. But it had not deed locations person to the metropolis center.

Monday's onslaught killed 3 members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small, leftist faction that has not been meaningfully progressive successful months of warring betwixt Israel and Hezbollah. Israel has not claimed the onslaught but is wide assumed to person carried it out.

Also Monday, Hamas announced that its apical commandant successful Lebanon, Fatah Sharif, was killed with his household successful an airstrike connected the Al-Buss exile campy successful the confederate larboard metropolis of Tyre. The Israeli subject confirmed it had targeted him.

The UN bureau for Palestinian refugees said Sharif was an employee, and was enactment connected administrative permission without wage successful March arsenic it investigated allegations astir his governmental activities. 

Israel has accused the agency, known arsenic UNRWA, of links to Palestinian militant groups, portion the bureau says it is committed to neutrality and works to forestall immoderate specified infiltration.

Hezbollah began firing rockets, drones and missiles into bluish Israel aft Hamas' October 7 onslaught from Gaza into Israel sparked the warfare successful the Palestinian territory. 

Hezbollah and Hamas are allies and some supported by Iran, and Hezbollah said it would proceed the attacks successful solidarity with the Palestinians until determination was a cease-fire successful Gaza.

Israel responded to the rockets with airstrikes successful Lebanon, and the warring has steadily escalated implicit the past year. 

The Lebanese authorities says the warring whitethorn person displaced up to a cardinal people, though the UN estimation is astir 200,000.

Tens of thousands of Israelis person besides been displaced. Israel has vowed to support warring until the attacks halt and its citizens tin instrumentality home.

Israel shows small involvement successful cease-fire calls arsenic it bloodies a longtime foe.

The United States and its allies person called for a cease-fire, hoping to debar further escalation that could gully successful Iran and acceptable disconnected a wider war. 

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has shown small interest, arsenic his state racks up subject achievements against a longtime foe.

France, which has adjacent ties to Lebanon, has joined the United States successful calling for a cease-fire. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, visiting Beirut Monday, urged Israel to refrain from a crushed offensive.

Barrot besides called connected Hezbollah to halt firing connected Israel, saying the radical 'bears dense work successful the existent situation, fixed its prime to participate the conflict.'

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, speaking aft gathering with Barrot, said the state is committed to an contiguous cease-fire followed by the deployment of Lebanese troops successful the south, successful keeping with a U.N. Security Council solution that ended the 2006 warfare but was ne'er afloat implemented.

Hezbollah, which boasts tens of thousands of battle-hardened fighters and long-range missiles susceptible of hitting anyplace wrong Israel, has agelong been seen arsenic the astir almighty militant radical successful the portion and a cardinal spouse to Iran successful some threatening and deterring Israel.

But Hezbollah has ne'er faced an onslaught rather similar this one, which began with a blase onslaught connected its pagers and walkie-talkies successful mid-September that killed dozens of radical and wounded astir 3,000 - including galore fighters but besides galore civilians.