Israel is engaged in “intense fighting” with Hezbollah inside southern Lebanon after sending troops across the border as part of a major assault, the military have said.
Israel announced overnight that it had launched “targeted” raids on Hezbollah positions on the border with southern Lebanon, controlled by Hezbollah.
A lieutenant commanding Israel’s Egoz unit reportedly told troops before going in that their operation was part of a “more substantial invasion” intended to halt Hezbollah’s ability to attack the northern territories across the border.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Makati said today this is “one of the most dangerous phases” in the country’s history.
"We urgently call for more aid to reinforce our ongoing efforts to provide basic support to displaced civilians," he said at a UN meeting hours after the Israeli incursion.
It comes as Hezbollah missiles targeted the headquarters of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and the Glilot military base in the suburbs of Tel Aviv.
Hezbollah used its new missile, the Fadi 4, in the attack. It is unclear whether the strikes landed any damage or whether any casualties were reported.
Key Points
- Hezbollah targets Mossad HQ in Tel Aviv
- Lebanese PM: ‘One of the most dangerous phases’ in history
- Israel says ‘intense’ fighting taking place in Lebanon
- Uk government charters flight for Britons in Lebanon
- Israeli military says it has begun ‘limited, localised’ operation in southern Lebanon
Iran does not want war with Israel – but what of Benjamin Netanyahu?
14:13
Tom Watling
Israel mobilises additional brigades for ‘tasks in northern sector’
14:11
Tom Watling
Israel has mobilised four reserve brigades and additional forces and is sending them to the northern sector after launching an invasion into Lebanon.
In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, the Israeli military said: “In accordance with the assessment of the situation, it was decided to mobilise four reserve brigades and additional forces for the operational tasks in the northern sector.
“Their recruitment will allow the continuation of the fighting effort against the terrorist organisation Hezbollah and the achievement of the goals of the war, including the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes.”
Mapped: Where Israel has fired missiles around the Middle East as troops begin ground invasion in Lebanon
14:00
Tom Watling
Israel claims Hezbollah planned to invade over the border
13:55
Tom Watling
Israel has claimed in a declassified military report that they discovered Hezbollah plans to invade over the border and “carry out its 7 October”, a reference to the deadly Hamas attack last year.
The report, as we earlier reported, also claimed Israel had neutralised around 700 military sites used by Hezbollah to stage this alleged attack.
“For decades, Hezbollah built terrorist and fighting infrastructures in the villages near the border, through which it planned to penetrate Israeli territory and carry out its October 7,” the report read.
“The map that Hezbollah planned to use as part of the ‘plan to conquer the Galilee’ was found inside one of the compounds that our fighters raided.”
It did not, however, release this plan. Below, you can see military spokesperson Daniel Hagari detail their findings from the report.
Listen to IDF Spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari as he reveals Hezbollah’s plan to “Conquer the Galilee” and commit another October 7-style massacre: pic.twitter.com/4AdYsoJDLv
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 1, 2024
Israel carried out dozens of raids into Lebanon over the past year, declassified report says
13:49
Tom Watling
Israeli forces have been carrying out raids into southern Lebanon for months, uncovering Hezbollah tunnels and weapon caches under homes and discovering invasion plans by the group, an Israeli military spokesman has claimed.
The spokesperson said the details are being declassified for the first time, hours after Israel officially announced a ground operation against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
The declassified report was posted by military spokesperson Daniel Hagari on X, formerly Twitter.
The report claimed that “following intelligence gathered over many years, dozens of ground operations have been carried out within the territory of Lebanon since the beginning of the war”.
Though Israel says it did not engage in fighting during the secret raids, they reported they discovered numerous weapons. They added that they had neutralised 700 targets.
In pictures: Israel examines aftermath of Hezbollah strikes over the border
13:44
Tom Watling
How countries are evacuating from Lebanon as airlines suspend flights
13:28
Tom Watling
Here we have some of the latest photos from Lebanon
13:16
Tom Watling
Poland to reduce number of staff at Beirut embassy
13:01
Tom Watling
Poland will limit the number of staff at its embassy in Beirut, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday, adding that Warsaw would organise transport for Polish citizens who want to leave Lebanon.
“The decision was made to limit the staff at our embassy in Beirut,” spokesperson Pawel Wronski told reporters. “Mainly these are the families of diplomats. We will try to keep the essential people, and those who are not essential will return to the country (Poland)”
Lebanon violence will not end well for anyone, UN special coordinator says
12:47
Tom Watling
The United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, has said that violence is spiralling to dangerous heights with strikes throughout Lebanon and incursions across the Blue Line.
“This cycle of violence will not end well for anyone,” Hennis-Plasschaert said.
UPD: More than 41,600 Palestinians killed in Gaza since 7 October
12:39
Tom Watling
The health ministry in Gaza has updated the total death toll for those killed in the enclave since Israel launched it’s retaliatory invasion last October.
The ministry said more than 41,638 Palestinians have been killed and 96,460 injured.
UK's Lammy says Israel must avoid getting 'bogged down' in Lebanon
12:26
Tom Watling
British foreign secretary David Lammy has said nobody wants a return to the past with Israel fighting in southern Lebanon over a long period, adding the price of a regional Middle Eastern war would be “huge”.
“None of us want to return to the years in which Israel found itself bogged down in a quagmire in southern Lebanon,” Lammy told broadcasters.
“None of us want to see a regional war. The price would be huge for the Middle East and it would have a significant effect on the global economy.”
Watch: Israel troops prepare for targeted ground operation in Lebanon
12:13
Tom Watling
Spain urges Israel to halt its ground raids in Lebanon
11:58
Tom Watling
Israel should cease conducting ground raids in southern Lebanon to avoid an escalation of the conflict enveloping the wider region, Spanish foreign minister Jose Manuel Albares has told reporters.
“We insist that the ground incursion should be halted, as we’re receiving very worrying information,” Albares said, adding that it was “necessary to reach a truce in Lebanon and a ceasefire in Gaza”.
UNRWA: more than 10,000 in Gaza Strip need medical evacuation
11:46
Tom Watling
More than 10,000 people in the Gaza Strip still need medical evacuation while more than 41,000 people have been killed in last 12 months of war, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East spokesperson Louise Wateridge told a briefing in Geneva on Tuesday.
Here are some of the latest photos from Lebanon
11:33
Tom Watling
Hezbollah media boss: Israel has not invaded yet
11:21
Alex Croft
The head of Hezbollah’s media office, Mohammad Afif, has claimed that no Israeli troops have entered Lebanese territory.
He added that the militant group’s strikes on targets in Tel Aviv were “only the beginning”.
In a written statement provided to Reuters, Afif, said there had been no “direct ground clashes” yet with Israeli troops.
Israeli security official says raids went only short distance into Lebanon
10:49
Tom Watling
The raids by Israeli troops in southern Lebanon that began overnight were limited and went only a short distance over the border, a security official said on Tuesday, adding that no direct clashes with Hezbollah fighters were reported.
The official said a wider operation targeting the Lebanese capital Beirut, which has been hit by repeated airstrikes in recent days, was “not on the table”.
Israeli defence minister briefs US defense secretary on Lebanon raids
10:32
Tom Watling
Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant has briefed US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Israel‘s raids into Lebanon, Gallant’s office said.
“The Minister discussed the localized and targeted raids that the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) launched overnight, against Hezbollah terror targets in the border area of southern Lebanon,” it said.
“These ground operations build on the recent and ongoing measures taken to eliminate senior Hezbollah leadership and to degrade Hezbollah’s offensive capabilities.”
Israeli bombardment kills at least 21 in Gaza as fighting rages
10:19
Tom Watling
Israeli airstrikes killed at least 21 people in Gaza on Tuesday, local medics said and fighting ramped up, as the Israeli military said it had been targeting command centres used by its Islamist militant foe Hamas.
Palestinian health officials said at least 13 people, including women and children, were killed in two Israeli strikes on two houses in Nuseirat, one of the enclave’s eight historic refugee camps.
There has been no immediate comment by the Israeli army on the two strikes.
Another strike on a school sheltering displaced Palestinian families in the Tuffah neighbourhood of Gaza City killed at least seven people, medics added.
The Israeli military said in a statement the air strike targeted Hamas militants operating from a command centre embedded in a compound that had previously served as Al-Shejaia School.
It accused Hamas of using the civilian population and facilities for military purposes, which Hamas denies.
Breaking: Hezbollah targets Mossad HQ in Tel Aviv
10:18
Alex Croft
Hezbollah says it has used missiles to target the headquarters of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, according to Reuters news agency.
The missiles also targeted the Glilot military base, where the army intelligence unit is stationed in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. It is unclear whether the strikes have caused any damage.
The Lebanese militant group says it used its new missile - Fadi 4 - in the attack.
According to Al-Jazeera, the missiles are named after Fadi Hassan Tawil, a militant killed in action in 1987 and the brother of Hezbollah commander Wissam al-Tawil.
Lebanese PM: ‘One of the most dangerous phases’ in history
10:13
Alex Croft
Speaking at the UN summit hours after Israeli troops began its incursion into southern Lebanon, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Makati said this is “one of the most dangerous phases” in the country’s history.
"We urgently call for more aid to reinforce our ongoing efforts to provide basic support to displaced civilians," he says.
Around one million people have been displaced in the last month since Israel opened a bombing campaign in southern Lebanon.
Sirens sound in central Israel, Israeli military says
10:03
Tom Watling
Sirens sounded in central Israel following the launch of projectiles which then crossed the border from Lebanon, the Israeli military has announced.
An explosion was heard in Tel Aviv and air raid sirens went off, a witness told Reuters.
Israeli lieutenant: We have a great honour to write history
09:53
Tom Watling
An Israeli lieutenant commanding a unit who has recently crossed the border into Lebanon has reportedly told troops that they are about to “write history”.
The Egoz unit commander, Lieutenant Colonel “A”, in a pep talk to his soldiers prior to their invasion, reportedly said: “We have a great honour to write history in the North just like we did in Gaza.
“We started with lower-grade operations, but today, we are starting a more substantial invasion in order to return the northern residents to their homes.
“This is a substantial matter because we have not invaded Lebanon since 2006.”
Holidaymakers raise concerns about trips to Cyprus
09:41
Simon Calder, Travel Correspondent
Cyprus, one of the Mediterranean's most popular islands is close to Lebanon, and a number of travellers with trips booked to Cyprus are looking at the map of the eastern Mediterranean with concern – and have contacted The Independent travel desk.
The popular Cypriot resort of Ayia Napa is barely 100 miles from the Lebanese capital, Beirut. Yet the Foreign Office does not have concerns about Cyprus. The official travel advice for the island has not been amended since June 2024, when it was “reviewed for style and accuracy”.
Under the heading “Regional risks” the only concern is the long-standing warning about travel to the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus: “FCDO can only provide limited consular support if you are visiting areas in the north that are not under control of the Republic of Cyprus.”
In their travel advice to citizens on Cyprus, the US State Department and the Australia government express no alarms about the unfolding catastrophe in Lebanon.
“Overspill” from Lebanon to Cyprus looks extremely unlikely. Consider Syria, which has been in a civil war since 2011; even though the Mediterranean port of Latakia is only 70 miles from Cyprus, there has been no danger posed to the island as a result of that tragic conflict.
As the Foreign Office does not warn against travel to Cyprus, there is no prospect of being able to cancel a trip for a full refund. Neither will travel insurance be of help; the insurer will say that there is no reason not to go.
It is legally possible to transfer a proper package holiday to someone else – though time is short to do this before Saturday. Alternatively, the holiday company may possibly offer the chance to switch to a different destination; this is relatively low season, and there may be capacity elsewhere.
UN launches £320m fund to help fleeing civilians in Lebanon
09:30
Tom Watling
Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, and United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon Imran Riza have launched a $426 million (£320 million) appeal to help civilians affected by the escalating conflict, the UN has announced.
France says it is sending helicopter carrier to eastern Mediterranean
09:21
Tom Watling
A French helicopter carrier will arrive in the eastern Mediterranean in the next five to six days and take up position in case a decision is taken to evacuate foreign nationals from Lebanon, a French army spokesperson has announced.
Western nations have been weighing their options on how to get nationals out of Lebanon safely if a full-scale war breaks out there, with Cyprus and possibly Turkey seen as offering sanctuary to tens of thousands of people. Earlier, we reported that the UK had chartered an emergency flight to evacuate Britons from the area.
Israel said intense fighting had erupted with the Hezbollah movement in south Lebanon after its paratroops and commandos launched raids there, at the start of a ground incursion that followed airstrikes against Hezbollah’s leadership.
France, which has about 20,000 citizens in Lebanon, sent its Dixmude helicopter carrier from the naval port of Toulon to the region on Monday, the French army spokesperson said.
Israeli ground raids will target Hezbollah strongholds along border, military says
09:08
Tom Watling
Israel‘s ground raids into southern Lebanon will target Hezbollah strongholds along the border that threaten Israel, not a war against the Lebanese people, Israel‘s military has said.
“These localised ground raids will target Hezbollah strongholds that threaten Israeli towns, kibbutzim and communities along our border,” said military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari. “Hezbollah turned Lebanese villages next to Israeli villages into military bases ready for an attack on Israel.”
US offers limited support for Israeli invasion - but calls for ‘diplomatic pathway’
09:00
Tom Watling
The US has said it agrees with Israel’s need to reduce the threat Hezbollah poses by “dismantling attack infrastructure along the border” - but it has stopped shy of backing an incursion into Lebanon.
In a readout of a call between US defence secretary Lloyd Austin III and his counterpart Yoav Gallant, the US department of defence wrote that Hezbollah must not be allowed the opportunity to conduct “October 7-style attacks on Israel’s northern communities”.
“They agreed on the necessity of dismantling attack infrastructure along the border to ensure that Lebanese Hizballah cannot conduct October 7-style attacks on Israel’s northern communities,” the readout said.
“The Secretary reaffirmed that a diplomatic resolution is required to ensure that civilians can return safely to their homes on both sides of the border.
“He and Minister Gallant discussed the importance of ultimately pivoting from military operations to a diplomatic pathway to provide security and stability as soon as feasible.”
Yemen's Houthis say they targeted Israeli military posts
08:47
Tom Watling
Yemen’s Houthi movement targeted Israeli military posts in Tel Aviv and Eilat with drones on Tuesday, the group’s military spokesperson Yahya Saree has said in a televised speech.
Netanyahu warns Iran: ‘Nowhere in Middle East out of Israel’s reach’
08:34
Tom Watling
Red Sea vessel caught in incident near Houthi-controlled port
08:18
Tom Watling
Earlier we reported that the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency was investigating an alleged incident with a cargo vessel northwest of Yemen’s Houthi-controlled Hodeidah port.
They have since revealed that the vessel reportedly saw four splashes close by but that all crew were safe and it was proceeding to its next port of call.
In pictures: Israel soldiers pray on the border as Beirut wakes up to destruction
08:03
Tom Watling
A former hostage fought for her own life in Gaza. A year on, she fights for her husband's freedom
07:50
Tom Watling
Israel warns Lebanese civilians not ot move vehicles during ‘intense’ fighting
07:38
Tom Watling
The Israeli military has said that intense fighting with Hezbollah is taking place in southern Lebanon as he warned residents not to move vehicles in the region.
Spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote in Arabic on X, formerly Twitter: “Urgent warning to the residents of South Lebanon ...
“Heavy fighting is taking place in southern Lebanon, with Hezbollah elements using the civilian environment and the population as human shields to launch attacks.
“For your personal safety, we ask you not to move vehicles from the northern region to the southern region of the Litani River. This warning is in effect until further notice.”
Here are some of the latest pictures from Lebanon
07:28
Tom Watling
UKMTO receives report of incident of Yemen’s Hodeidah
07:13
Tom Watling
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency says it has received a report of an incident 97 nautical miles northwest of Yemen’s Hodeidah, adding that the authorities are investigating.
Hezbollah says it targeted Israeli troops in Metula with artillery fire
07:04
Namita Singh
Lebanon’s armed group Hezbollah said in a statement on Tuesday that it had targeted Israeli troops across the border in Metula with artillery fire but made no mention of Israel’s announcement that it had begun a ground incursion into Lebanon.
Israel announced overnight that it had begun “limited” raids in the border area of southern Lebanon.
Netanyahu says nowhere in Middle East out of Israel's reach
06:35
Namita Singh
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Iranians on Monday that there was nowhere in the Middle East beyond Israel’s reach, three days after Israel’s military killed the leader of Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Mr Netanyahu, speaking in English in a three-minute-long video released by his office in which he said he was addressing the Iranian people, blamed the Iranian government for plunging the Middle East “deeper into war” at the cost of its own people.
“There is nowhere in the Middle East Israel cannot reach. There is nowhere we will not go to protect our people and protect our country,” Mr Netanyahu said.
He said the Iranian government was bringing Iranians “closer to the abyss”. Iran and Israel would be at peace when Iran is “finally free”, which he said would “come a lot sooner than people think”.
Referring to Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah, killed on Friday in Israeli airstrikes on Beirut, Mr Netanyahu said that “puppets” of the Iranian “regime” were eliminated every day.
Israel has ramped up attacks on militant targets in Lebanon against Hezbollah, the best armed of militant groups across the Middle East aligned with Iran.
Suspected Yemen Houthi rebel attack targets ship in Red Sea
06:34
Namita Singh
A suspected attack Tuesday by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeted a ship in the Red Sea, likely marking their first assault on commercial shipping in weeks as the Israel-Hamas war threatens to become a regional conflict.
The attack comes as Israeli ground forces entered Lebanon after days of Israeli airstrikes that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and other top leaders and the earlier explosions of sabotaged electronic devices used by the Shiite militia.
The Houthis had threatened “escalating military operations” targeting Israel on Monday after they apparently shot down a US military drone flying over the country.
The attack Tuesday morning took place some 110km off the port city of Hodeida in the Red Sea, which has become a battlefield for shippers since the Houthis began their campaign targeting ships traveling through a waterway that once saw $1 trillion a year of cargo pass through it.
A captain on a ship saw four “splashes” near his vessel, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said in a warning.
That likely would have been missiles or drones launched at the vessel.“All crew are safe and the vessel is proceeding to (its) next port of call,” the UKMTO said.The Houthis did not immediately claim the attack.
Uk government charters flight for Britons in Lebanon
06:33
Namita Singh
The UK government has chartered a flight out of Lebanon for Britons wanting to leave as Israel said it had begun a limited, localised” operation in the southern part of the country.
Foreign secretary David Lammy described the situation in Lebanon as “volatile” and with the “potential to deteriorate quickly” as the flight, due to leave Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport on Wednesday, was confirmed.
Earlier, Mr Lammy reiterated calls for Britons in Lebanon to leave and said the government will do “all that we can” to assist people in fleeing.
Hours after Mr Lammy’s announcement, the Israeli military said it had begun a “limited, localised” operation against its Hezbollah targets in the region.
Report:
In Pictures: Israeli troops deploy to staging area along Lebanon border
05:54
Namita Singh
Missile targets US military facility near Baghdad airport
05:24
Namita Singh
A missile attack has targeted a US military facility near the Baghdad airport, two Iraqi security officials said.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said one rocket fell in an adjacent area used by Iraqi security forces and damaged vehicles parked there.
No casualties were reported in the attack early on Tuesday. Air traffic was halted as a result of the strike.US officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment and no group claimed responsibility.
Iran-backed Iraqi militias have regularly targeted bases housing US troops in Iraq over the past year, which they have said is a response to Washington’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas and Hezbollah in Gaza and Lebanon.
US supports Israel's right to defend itself, Austin says
05:23
Namita Singh
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin told Israel’s defence minister that he agreed on the need for a ground offensive inside Lebanon to rid the border area of Hezbollah weapons and other means it can use to carry out attacks across the frontier.
Mr Austin told Yoav Gallant in a call that the US supports Israel’s right to defend itself and discussed Israel’s military operations.
Israeli ground forces moved into southern Lebanon overnight, marking a significant escalation of an offensive against Hezbollah.
The Israeli military said on Tuesday it has begun a “limited” ground operation against Hezbollah targets it said posed an “immediate threat” to northern Israeli communities.
“We agreed on the necessity of dismantling attack infrastructure along the border,” Mr Austin said in a statement posted on the X social platform.
Biden urges immediate ceasefire hours before Israel begins ground operation
05:20
Namita Singh
The White House and the US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Israel’s ground operations in Lebanon.But on Monday, US president Joe Biden had called for a ceasefire.
“I’m more worried than you might know and I’m comfortable with them stopping,” Mr Biden told reporters when asked if he was comfortable with Israeli plans for a cross-border incursion. “We should have a ceasefire now.”
Israel last week rejected a proposal by the US and France calling for a 21-day ceasefire on the Lebanon border to give time for a diplomatic settlement that would allow displaced civilians on both sides to return home.
Resistance forces ready for ground engagement with Israel, says Hezbollah
04:58
Namita Singh
Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem, in a first public speech on Monday since Hassan Nasrallah’s death, said that “the resistance forces are ready for a ground engagement” with Israel.
He said Hezbollah had continued to fire rockets as deep as 150km into Israeli territory.
“We know that the battle may be long. We will win as we won in the liberation of 2006,” he said, referring to the last big conflict between the two foes.
Late on Monday, Lebanese troops pulled back about 5km from positions along Lebanon’s southern border with Israel, a Lebanese security source told Reuters. A Lebanese army spokesperson did not confirm or deny the movement.
Lebanon’s army has historically stayed on the sidelines of major conflicts with Israel, and in the last year of hostilities has not fired on the Israeli military.
Israeli strikes kill 95 in Lebanon
04:50
Namita Singh
At least 95 people have been killed and 172 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon’s southern regions, the eastern Bekaa Valley, and Beirut in the last 24 hours, Lebanon’s health ministry said early on Tuesday.
Israel’s ground invasion into Lebanon follows its deadly detonation of booby-trapped Hezbollah pagers, two weeks of airstrikes, and its killing on Friday of Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah, which dealt the group one of the heaviest blows in decades.
The intensive air strikes have eliminated several Hezbollah commanders but also killed about 1,000 civilians and forced one million to flee their homes, according to the Lebanese government.
Overnight, strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs, a security source said. A Reuters reporter witnessed a flash of light and a series of loud blasts about an hour after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate areas near buildings it said contained Hezbollah infrastructure south of the Lebanese capital.
Israeli strike on Damascus kills 3 civilians, Syrian media says
04:35
Namita Singh
Three civilians were killed and nine others injured in an Israeli airstrike on the capital Damascus, Syrian state media said on Tuesday citing a military source. Israel’s military said it does not comment on foreign media reports.
Israel has been carrying out strikes against Iran-linked targets in Syria for years but has ramped up raids since the Hamas attack on Israel’s southern territory on 7 October 2023.
Hamas killed 1,200 people and took about 250 hostage in its assault on Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Israel in response launched a massive assault on Hamas in Gaza, reducing most of the Palestinian territory to rubble, displacing most of its 2.3 million people and killing more than 41,300 Palestinians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.
Israel targets Palestinian Fatah movement's Lebanese commander, Palestinian officials say
04:34
Namita Singh