As time moves hand-in-hand with the strikes that Israel and Lebanon have been hitting each other with, fear of an all-out war continues to linger among the people, the countries' allies and the rest of the world.
The latest in the series of already increasing worries comes as the Israeli military chief said that the military is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon. The statement came in the backdrop of Hezbollah firing dozens of rockets into Israeli territory and a missile at Tel Aviv, one of the deepest strike yet by the militant group.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration in the United States has reportedly been floating a proposal for a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah to tone down the escalating conflict between the two.
Israel-Hezbollah Tensions | The Latest
Fresh Strikes Hit Beirut, Hezbollah Drone Commander Killed
Following Israeli PM Netanyahu's call to "keep fighting", fresh strikes have been reported from the Lebanese capital. As per Israel’s Army Radio, the IDF targeted the the head of Hezbollah’s air unit in Beirut.
Reuters, citing a security source, has also reported that a senior Hezbollah leader was the target of the latest air raid on Thursday.
Following the strike, the Israeli military said it killed a Hezbollah drone commander in the suburbs of Beirut.Hezbollah did not immediately comment on Israel's claim that Mohammed Hussein Surour was dead.
Netanyahu's Message To Israeli Troops
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that he has asked the military to continue fighting with "full force". However, he has not responded to the call for ceasefire which was sounded on Wednesday.
The country's foreign minister Israel Katz took to X and said, "There will be no ceasefire in the north. We will continue to fight against the terrorist organisation Hezbollah with all our might until victory and the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes."
Israel Prepping For Possible Ground Ops
Israeli military's Chief of Staff Lt. gen. Herzi Halevi on Wednesday said that their latest strikes were meant to "prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah".
Making an apparent reference to the missile fired at Tel Aviv, Halevi said, "Today, Hezbollah expanded its range of fire, and later today, they will receive a very strong response. Prepare yourselves."
However, whether Halevi was referring to a ground operation, airstrikes or some other form of retaliatory action against Hezbollah remained unclear.
In the recent days, the Israeli military had said that it has no immediate plans for a ground invasion. But, Halevi's remarks are the strongest yet, suggesting that his troops could be moving in.
The announcement also came as a drone hit a building at the port in southern Israel's Eilat city, injuring two people. The attack was claimed by an umbrella group for an Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. The Israeli military had said that a second drone was also intercepted.
Drones were identified "approaching from the East", the Israeli army said.
Tensions, which were already present between Israel and Hezbollah, have escalated in the recent days with the pager and walkie-talkie blasts in Lebanon last week.
Hezbollah has been striking Israel since the beginning of Hamas' October 7 attack last year. The militant group had repeatedly said that it won't stop its strikes until there is a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, adding that it was attacking Israel to show support to its ally -- Hamas.
US, Allies Call For 21-Day 'Immediate' Ceasefire
The United States, France and other allies have jointly called for an "immediate" 21-day ceasefire to allow for negotiations in the rising tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.
The joint statement, which was negotiated on the sidelines of the UNGA in New York, noted that the recent fighting is "intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation".
“We call for an immediate 21-day cease-fire across the Lebanon-Israel border to provide space for diplomacy. We call on all parties, including the Governments of Israel and Lebanon, to endorse the temporary cease-fire immediately," the statement read.
The nations calling for the ceasefire include the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
However, there was no immediate comment from Israel or Lebanon or Hezbollah's side, but, senior US officials noted that all parties were aware of the call for a ceasefire and would make comments soon.
This came in the backdrop of reports saying that the Biden administration has been floating a temporary ceasefire proposal for the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, in a bid to calm down the escalating tensions between the two sides.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other US officials have spent the last three days at and on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting of world leaders in New York lobbying other countries to support the ceasefire plan.
The Biden administration hopes that their plan could lead to long-term stability along the border. However, specifics of this plan are yet to be completed. One of the officials, cited by the Associated Press, said that Israel is supportive of the US' efforts to deescalate the tensions.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden, meanwhile, said that an "all-out war" is still possible as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah escalates, but he's hopeful that a solution can be found to prevent the bloodshed from continuing. Biden made the comments during an interview on ABC channel.
Lebanon Death Toll Rises
The Lebanese health minister on Wednesday said that 51 people were killed and 233 others injured in the Israeli strikes. The toll comes fresh on top of the 564 people who were killed in the previous two days. This takes the total death toll to 615.
However, Health minister Firas Abiad did not give a specific breakdown of how many women and children had been injured on Wednesday. For Lebanon, this week has notably been the deadliest since the bruising month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.
Over 90,000 Displaced In Lebanon
The United Nations has said that in the recent Israeli strikes on Lebanon, more than 90,000 people have been displaced in the region.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Wednesday that as many as 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel nearly a year ago, drawing retaliation from Tel Aviv.
Reports said that the fleeing families have rushed to Beirut and the coastal city of Sidon, sleeping in schools-turned-shelters, as well as in cars, parks, and along the beach. Some even sought to leave the country, leading to a massive traffic jam at the border with Syria.
Hezbollah Missile At Tel Aviv, Mossad HQ
Hezbollah fired dozens of missiles into Israel early on Wednesday, including a missile aimed at Tel Aviv, which was the deepest strike by the Lebanese group yet.
The Israeli military had intercepted the surface-to-surface missile, which led to further escalation of the tensions, leading to Israeli strikes on Lebanon killing hundreds of people.
Air-raid sirens were sounding in Tel Aviv and across central Israel as the missile entered the airspace. However, no damages or casualties were reported. The Israeli military later said that it struck the site in southern Lebanon from where the missile was launched.
Hezbollah had said that it fired a Qader 1 ballistic missile targeting the headquarters of Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad. The militant group blames Mossad for the recent string of targeted killings of its top commanders, and for the pager and walkie-talkie blasts in Lebanon last week.
Israeli military said that this was the first time that a projectile reached central Israel. Hezbollah, meanwhile, claimed to have targeted an intelligence base near Tel Aviv last month in an aerial strike, but there was no confirmation for the same.
In view of the strikes from the Lebanese group, the Israeli army said that it would call up two reserve brigades for missions in the north. "This will enable the continuation of combat against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation," the military said.
