Middle East staring into the precipice of WWIII: Israel accused of 'dragging the entire region into chaos' as Lebanon strikes 'kill 356, including 24 children' in act leaving UN 'gravely alarmed'

Israel was accused of 'dragging the full portion into chaos' aft it pounded Lebanon with aerial strikes connected Monday, sidesplitting astatine slightest 356 people, including 24 children, according to the Lebanese government.

Turkey joined Egypt successful calling connected Israel to halt its bluish violative arsenic thousands of radical were displaced from the suburbs successful a hopeless propulsion to scope the superior - earlier Beirut excessively fell nether dense Israeli fire.

Harrowing video showed salvoes of IDF missiles hitting villages successful the south, adjacent the borderline with Israel successful the deadliest cross-border speech since the Gaza War erupted. But arsenic residents fled north, postulation caught successful gridlock adjacent Sidon was deed by a 'strike' landing 'about 200 metres' from Sky News reporters.

Hellish scenes prompted fury from determination powers, informing the escalation risked dragging the Middle East into a wider war. Egypt urged the United Nations to intervene - arsenic the bid body's main said helium was 'gravely alarmed' by the civilian casualties.

Senior Hezbollah commander Ali Karaki was the people of strikes deeper into Lebanon connected Monday, a elder information root told Reuters. Hezbollah said the commandant was live and had been moved to information successful a statement. 

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, a spokesperson for the Israeli military, told a televised quality league precocious connected Monday that Israel was prepared for a afloat crushed penetration of Lebanon if needed.

He said Israel is 'not looking for wars' but would bash 'whatever is necessary' to guarantee its information aft months of back-and-forth with Hezbollah, based retired of confederate Lebanon.

Asked if this could spell a full-scale warfare with Lebanon, helium said: 'Is the service prepared? Yes. The service is successful afloat readiness, and we volition bash immoderate is indispensable to bring backmost location each our citizens to the bluish borderline safely.'

He added that the IDF makes 'vast efforts not to deed civilians and marque each effort to mitigate harm to civilians during operational activity'.

'Regarding the precocious fig of casualties, each 1 is simply a calamity successful Lebanon,' helium said.

Health Minister Firass Abiad said 'thousands of families' had been displaced by the shelling truthful far.

'We slumber and aftermath up to bombardment... that's what our beingness has become,' said Wafaa Ismail, 60, a housewife from the confederate colony of Zawtar.

World powers implored Israel and Hezbollah to propulsion backmost from the brink of all-out war, with the absorption of unit shifting sharply from Israel's confederate beforehand with Gaza to its bluish borderline with Lebanon. 

Turkey's overseas ministry said successful a nonstop informing against escalating struggle that 'Israel's attacks connected Lebanon people a caller signifier successful its efforts to resistance the full portion into chaos'.

An outspoken professional of Israel's violative successful effect to the onslaught by Hamas militants that sparked the war, Turkey urged the planetary assemblage to intervene.

'It is imperative that each institutions liable for maintaining planetary bid and security, particularly the United Nations Security Council, arsenic good arsenic the planetary community, instrumentality the indispensable measures without delay,' the overseas ministry said.

'The countries that unconditionally enactment Israel are helping (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu shed humor for his governmental interests,' it said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is owed to code the UN General Assembly connected Tuesday, is expected to absorption connected the Gaza war.

Egypt, whose narration with its bluish neighbour has been further strained by the warfare successful Gaza, called connected the UN to intervene implicit the escalation.

Cairo, having played a cardinal relation successful mediating betwixt Israel and Hamas successful Gaza, said that further struggle 'threatens to resistance the portion into a broad determination war'.

Tensions escalated dramatically aft pagers and walkie-talkies ostensibly utilized by Hezbollah members exploded connected Tuesday and Wednesday of past week, causing thousands of injuries and galore deaths.

Hezbollah attributed blasted to Israel and launched rockets southbound earlier Israel denied involvement. Experts judge Israel whitethorn person intercepted the devices and strapped them with explosives earlier they arrived successful Lebanon to regenerate mobile phones deemed susceptible to Israeli hacking. 

The Iranian proxy radical has continued to occurrence rockets into Israel successful caller days, including long-range missiles for the archetypal clip successful the escalating conflict, with the Israeli Prime Minister informing the group: 'Whoever hurts us, we volition wounded him more'.

In an denotation that the portion is sliding ever-closer to an all-out war, Benjamin Netanyahu added that his state faces 'complicated days' and called connected Israelis to enactment agreed arsenic the run successful Lebanon unfolded.

'I promised that we would alteration the information balance, the equilibrium of powerfulness successful the northbound - that is precisely what we are doing,' helium said successful a connection issued pursuing a situational appraisal with apical brass astatine the subject office successful Tel Aviv.

Israel is aiming to 'broadly neutralise' the menace posed by Lebanon's long-range missiles, according to veteran analyst Ehud Ya'ari.

He told the country's Channel 12 that the militant radical - proscribed arsenic terrorists by the UK, US and others - has built up an arsenal of long-range missiles implicit the past 18 years, adding that the aerial unit 'won't beryllium capable to destruct each missile.'

Terrified residents in Beirut and elsewhere received calls and texts informing them to determination distant from Hezbollah targets, with Lebanon's accusation curate condemning the alerts arsenic a maneuver of 'psychological warfare implemented by the enemy'.

Lebanon's premier curate Najib Mikati accused Israel of waging 'a warfare of extermination' astatine a furniture gathering this morning, and besides urged the United Nations to intervene 'to deter the (Israeli) aggression', arsenic the Middle East teeters connected the borderline of all-out conflict.

'The continuing Israeli aggression connected Lebanon is simply a warfare of extermination successful each consciousness of the connection and a destructive program that aims to destruct Lebanese villages and towns,' helium said. 

He urged 'the United Nations and the General Assembly and influential countries... to deter the (Israeli) aggression'.

Hezbollah, funded and equipped by Iran, is some a governmental enactment and militant radical operating wrong Lebanon. It does not correspond the Lebanese people, but continues to exert important governmental influence.

The radical has received wide condemnation from the radical of Lebanon amid the country's governmental and economical crisis. 

Israeli service main Herzi Halevi said meantime that its strikes had deed combat infrastructure Hezbollah had been gathering for 2 decades.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called Monday 'a important peak' successful the operation.

'This is the astir hard week for Hezbollah since its constitution - the results talk for themselves,' helium said.

'Entire units were taken retired of conflict arsenic a effect of the activities conducted astatine the opening of the week successful which galore terrorists were injured.'

Huge plumes of fume were seen astatine aggregate sites heavy into the country, with rockets fired astatine areas not antecedently deed by strikes and witnesses reporting aggravated bombing raids.

The IDF issued a informing to residents of villages successful confederate Lebanon: 'If you are successful oregon adjacent a gathering that Hezbollah uses to store weapons oregon weapons, you indispensable evacuate this gathering and determination distant from it immediately. 

'Anyone who is adjacent Hezbollah operatives oregon the organization's weapons puts themselves successful danger.' 

Hagari told a media briefing Israel's subject 'will prosecute successful (more) extended and precise strikes against panic targets which person been embedded wide passim Lebanon'.

Asked by reporters astir a imaginable Israeli crushed incursion into Lebanon, Hagari said 'we volition bash immoderate is needed' successful bid to instrumentality evacuated residents of bluish Israel to their homes safely, a warfare precedence for the Israeli government.

He said that Hezbollah implicit the years has stashed weapons, including cruise missiles, successful houses and buildings passim confederate Lebanon, and called connected residents to enactment distant from these sites.

He presented successful a media briefing an aerial video of what helium described arsenic Hezbollah operatives trying to motorboat cruise missiles from a civilian location successful Lebanon, and the consequent Israeli onslaught moments earlier it was launched.

'Hezbollah is endangering you. Endangering you and your families.'