Dubai: Israeli and Hezbollah forces were on high alert late on Sunday hours after they had exchanged heaviest fire since the start of Gaza war on october 7, in a major escalation of cross-border hostilities.
Early on Sunday, Israeli warplanes bombarded dozens of targets in southern Lebanon, prompting Hezbollah to launch 320 Katyusha rockets and drones at 11 military sites.
In what Israel described as pre-emptive strikes against Hezbollah positions, a military spokesman said that approximately 100 fighter jets targeted and destroyed thousands of Hezbollah rocket launcher barrels across more than 40 sites.
Both sides said the operations have concluded for now. However, they remain on high alert with occasional exchanges of fire.
A US defence official said the United States helped track the barrage of rockets and drones launched by Hezbollah against Israel, but was not involved in strikes in Lebanon or in shooting down incoming projectiles.
“The US was not involved in Israel’s preemptive strikes last night. We did provide some ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) support in terms of tracking incoming Lebanese Hezbollah attacks, but did not conduct any kinetic operations as they were not required,” the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
“We continue to closely monitor the situation and remain well-postured and ready to support the defense of Israel from attacks by Iran and any of its proxies,” the official added.
4 killed
A Lebanese group allied with Hezbollah said one of its fighters was killed in Sunday’s airstrikes. Two other people were killed and several others were wounded, according to state-run National News Agency.
The Israeli military said a navy soldier was killed and two others wounded in combat in northern Israel on Sunday.
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said his group's attack on Israel on Sunday targeted a military intelligence base near Tel Aviv around 100 kilometres (70 miles) from the Israel-Lebanon border.
The "main target for the operation" inside Israel was "the Glilot base - the main Israeli military intelligence base", Nasrallah said in a televised speech. He denied Israel destroyed thousands of Hezbollah rocket launchers.
Flights suspended
Israel’s main airport outside Tel Aviv was shut down for a few hours, with incoming flights directed toward neighboring states.
UAE’s national carrier Etihad Airways cancelled its flights to and from Tel Aviv and Beirut on August 25, following the temporary closure of Tel Aviv airport in the morning and Emirates’ sister airline, flydubai, diverted its Dubai-Tel Aviv flight FZ 1245 to Ramon International Airport.
Air France announced the suspension of its flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut scheduled for Sunday and Monday. Additionally, German airline Lufthansa has extended its suspension of flights to Beirut until the end of September and will not operate flights to Tel Aviv or Tehran until September 2.
British Airways said on Sunday that it was suspending its flights to and from Tel Aviv until Wednesday.
“We’ve been continually monitoring the situation in the Middle East and have taken the operational decision to suspend our flights to and from Tel Aviv up to and including Wednesday 28 August” a spokesman for the airline said. “Safety is always our top priority, and we’re contacting customers to advise them of their travel options.”
Passengers stuck at Beirut airport
Beirut airport was functioning Sunday but many passengers were stuck as flights were cancelled or delayed, an AFP correspondent said.
“We came at 4:30am (0130 GMT) for our flight at 8 am but they told us it was cancelled,” said Elham Shukair, a passenger headed to the United States via Jordan.
Seated on her bag in the arrivals hall, she said she had booked another flight later Sunday with Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines in the hope of reaching Amman and making her onward connection.
On Sunday, other passengers sat on the floor in the arrivals hall as screens showed cancelled or delayed flights, while the arrivals area was largely empty.
“Our flight is still scheduled but it is delayed,” said Diala Hatoum, who was set to travel with her son on a Qatar Airways flight.
“We will see, we are waiting now,” she told AFP.
UN, Lebanon PM urge de-escalation, Al Sissi warns of dangers
The United Nations and Lebanon’s prime minister urged de-escalation. The office of the UN special coordinator for Lebanon and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) “call on all to cease fire and refrain from further escalatory action”, a joint statement said, describing the latest developments as “worrying”.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Sunday told ministers at an emergency meeting that he had been holding “a series of contacts with Lebanon’s friends to stop the escalation”.
“What is required is to stop the Israeli aggression first of all, and to apply Resolution 1701,” a statement from his office said.
Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi warned against further regional escalation on Sunday in a meeting with the United States’ highest-ranking general.
Al Sissi “warned of the dangers of a new front opening in Lebanon and stressed the necessity of preserving Lebanon’s stability and sovereignty”, according to a statement from the president’s office.
Rising concerns
Although Sunday’s attacks remained within the so-called rules of engagement, they raise concerns that the near-daily trading of fire between Israel and Hezbollah for the past 10 months could at any moment escalate into a wider war.
Hezbollah said its attack on Israel was the start of retaliation for the killing of its commander on July 30 in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Israel hasn’t confirmed the targets but sirens sounded repeatedly in the north on Sunday morning, Bloomberg news agency said.
The military there is limiting gatherings to 300 people inside and 30 people outside. It said workplaces can operate normally if they’re inside and have bomb shelters that can be reached quickly.
‘Not the final word’
Later in the evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Sunday’s strikes in Lebanon were “not the final word”. “We are striking Hezbollah with surprising, crushing blows... This is another step towards changing the situation in the north and safely returning our residents to their homes. And, I repeat, this is not the final word,” Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting.
Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said that “We continue to closely monitor the situation and have been very clear that the US is postured to support the defence of Israel.”
He referred questions about it to the Israelis.
On July 30, an Israeli airstrike killed Hezbollah’s military chief Fuad Shukr in Beirut. Hours later, Iran blamed the Jewish state for killing the head of Hamas’ political office Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Iran has vowed to retaliate.
The US has been trying to mediate between Lebanon and Israel to reach a compromise over border disputes.
Israel wants Hezbollah to move its fighters away from the border to allow its citizens to return to the north. Tens of thousands of Israelis and Lebanese have been evacuated from the border area due to the fighting.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and designated a terrorist organisation by the US, says it will continue hostilities with Israel until the country agrees a ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza.
The war in the Palestinian enclave began on October 7 after Hamas militants, also supported by Iran, invaded Israel and killed 1,200 people and abducted others.
Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has killed more than 40,000 people, according to health officials in Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas.
