Israel-Lebanon latest: Israeli military ‘ready’ to invade as strikes on Hezbollah kill 492 in one day
Israel says it’s ‘not looking for wars’ but army is ‘in full readiness’ to push Hezbollah back from border
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The death toll from Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon has risen to 492 people, including 35 children and 58 women, with at least 1,645 people wounded.
Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, and the main highway out of the southern port city of Sidon was jammed with cars heading toward Beirut. It was the biggest exodus in the region, and the highest single day death toll, since a 2006 war.
It came as Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said the country’s forces were fully prepared for a ground invasion of Lebanon if necessary.
While stating that Israel is “not looking for wars”, he said the Israeli army was “in full readiness, and we will do whatever is necessary” to push Hezbollah back from the border.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a video message to civilians urging them to heed Israeli military warnings and evacuate their homes.
He said: “I have a message for the people of Lebanon: Israel’s war is not with you. It’s with Hezbollah. For too long, Hezbollah has been using you as human shields.
“I urge you – take this warning seriously.”
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Watch: Heavy barrage of missiles from Lebanon intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome
Multiple interceptions of rockets fired from Lebanon were seen over Israel’s northern city of Haifa on Monday (23 September).
Hezbollah said it fired dozens of rockets toward Israel, including at military bases.
Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes on Monday killed 492 people, including more than 58 women and 35 children.
Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, and the main highway out of the southern port city of Sidon was jammed with cars heading toward Beirut in the biggest exodus since 2006.
Watch the video here:
Watch: Heavy barrage of missiles from Lebanon intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome
Multiple interceptions of rockets fired from Lebanon were seen over Israel’s northern city of Haifa on Monday (23 September). Hezbollah said it fired dozens of rockets toward Israel, including at military bases. Lebanon's health ministry said Israeli strikes on Monday killed 492 people, including more than 58 women and 35 children. Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, and the main highway out of the southern port city of Sidon was jammed with cars heading toward Beirut in the biggest exodus since 2006.
Israel and Hezbollah exchange more rocket attacks
Israel’s military has claimed it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon overnight, a day after it launched a wave of airstrikes against the Iran-backed group’s sites in Lebanon’s deadliest day in decades.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah said this morning it had attacked several Israeli military targets, including an explosives factory 37 miles into Israel, with the Fadi series of rockets.
It said it attacked the explosives factory around 4 a.m. (0100 GMT) and the Megiddo airfield three separate times overnight.
Turkey slams Israel's attacks on Lebanon, calls for international measures
Turkey slammed Israel’s recent attacks on Lebanon as “efforts to drag the region into chaos” on Monday, calling for international measures against them and a halt to support for Israel.
In some of the heaviest cross-border fire exchange since its nearly year-long war against Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza began, Israel has started shifting its focus north to Iran-backed Hezbollah, which has been firing rockets into Israel in support of Hamas, also backed by Iran.
Lebanese authorities have said Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah sites in the country had killed 492 people on Monday and sent tens of thousands fleeing for safety in the country’s deadliest day in decades.
In a statement late on Monday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said countries that “unconditionally support Israel” were helping Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “shed blood for his political interests”.
“It is imperative that all institutions responsible for maintaining international peace and security, especially the United Nations Security Council, as well as the international community, take the necessary measures without delay,” it said.
White House says a cease-fire deal between Israel and Gaza is key to easing tensions in the region
Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, that the Biden administration is concerned about what’s happening between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon but insisted that getting a cease-fire deal between Israel and Gaza is key to help ease tensions in the region.
Jean-Pierre said the latest conflict has “gone on for too long.”
“It’s in everyone’s interest to resolve it quickly and diplomatically. And that’s where we’ve been. That’s where we continue to say we need to see a diplomatic resolution,” Jean-Pierre told reporters travelling with President Joe Biden to New York, where Biden is set to deliver his final address as president to the UN General Assembly session on Tuesday.
Jean-Pierre said securing freedom for Israelis and Americans who continue to be held by Hamas, increasing humanitarian aid into Gaza and ending the war will help ease tensions.“That’s what we’re going to continue to work towards,” she said.
Here are some of the latest photos from Lebanon
Below we have some of the latest photos from Lebanon after Israel launched its largest attack on the countries’ southern regions in nearly two decades.
Watch: Netanyahu urges Lebanon civilians to evacuate their homes in video message
‘I woke up to the sound of bombing’: Lebanese describe moments of desperation
In southern Lebanon, families fled north by cars, trucks, and motorcycles as the Israeli military targeted areas linked to Hezbollah on Monday.
Some residents reported receiving warnings from the Israeli military via text messages and voice recordings, urging them to leave areas near Hezbollah positions.
Zahra Sawli, a student, told BBC’s Newshour programme: “I woke up at 6am to the sound of bombing. By noon it started to get really intense and I saw a lot of strikes in my area.
“I heard a lot of glass shattering.”
She said: “Where are we supposed to go? A lot of people are still stuck on the streets. A lot of my friends are still stuck in traffic because a lot of people are trying to flee.”
The Lebanese health ministry said that 492 people had been killed and more than 1,600 injured in the Israeli bombardment on Monday.
Irish president accuses Israeli embassy of circulating his letter to Iran
The president of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, accused the Israeli embassy in Dublin of circulating a letter he wrote to Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, after Mr Pezeshkian’s election.
The letter, which offered congratulations and expressed condolences over the death of Mr Pezeshkian’s predecessor, drew criticism — both in the UK and Ireland — once it became public. “You should ask where the criticism came from and how the letter was circulated and by whom and for what purpose,” Mr Higgins said.
He suggested the Israeli embassy was responsible for circulating it, something the embassy denied, calling his accusation “baseless” and “highly inflammatory and potentially slanderous”.
His letter to Mr Pezeshkian mentioned that Iran had a “crucial role” to play in the Middle East after Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash in May.
“I regret of course the circumstances that brought about the election, and take the opportunity to repeat the condolences of the people of Ireland for the death of your predecessor President Raisi,” the letter read.
In pictures: Israeli airstrikes in Beirut's southern suburbs
Israel ‘considering siege’ on Hamas in northern Gaza
Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly considering a plan to evacuate Palestinian civilians from northern Gaza and impose a military siege on Hamas militants who remain in the area.
The plan, endorsed by some Israeli military figures, suggests designating the area as a “closed military zone” and forcing all civilians to leave, The Guardian reported.
The Likud MP Avichai Boaron said the plan was ‘‘currently being evaluated by the government”.
“According to the plan, the IDF will evacuate all the civilians who are in the north of Gaza, from the border to the Gaza River,” Boaron was quoted as saying by the outlet. ‘‘And after they will evacuate, the IDF will assume that only the terrorists will remain. When the civilian population has left, you can find and kill all the terrorists without harming the civilians.”
The goal is said to be to isolate and target Hamas fighters without civilian casualties, pressuring them to surrender or face starvation.
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