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Israeli Military Escalation in Southern Lebanon Amid Ongoing Conflict with Hezbollah
As Israeli airstrikes intensified across several towns in southern Lebanon amidst fierce clashes in the Aita al-Shaab area with Hezbollah, Israeli military tanks entered the outskirts of the town of Ramish.
Correspondents from Al Arabiya/Al Hadath reported that tanks advanced into the outskirts of Ramish toward Aita al-Shaab, maneuvering to flank the area, while airstrikes continued. It was noted that Israeli tanks were also present on the road between Debel and Ramish. Many residents of predominantly Christian Ramish have refused to leave their homes since the outbreak of hostilities, fearing they might not be able to return.
Additionally, Israeli forces have reportedly placed explosives in homes and detonated them in Aita al-Shaab.
Hezbollah, for its part, announced that they targeted Israeli soldiers in the town of Markaba for the third time today, as well as in Kfarkela in southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, air raid sirens sounded in 142 locations across northern Israel following the launch of a ballistic missile from the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon, which was intercepted over the Wadi Ara region, as confirmed by Al Arabiya/Al Hadath. Some debris fell on the outskirts of Haifa.
Moreover, the correspondent indicated that missiles were fired at the suburbs of Haifa and Mount Carmel, as well as in the Upper Galilee and Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel. Hezbollah reportedly launched more than 40 rockets toward northern Israel since the morning.
This heightened military escalation coincided with the arrival of U.S. Special Envoy Amos Hochstein in Lebanon for talks with officials aimed at establishing a diplomatic solution to halt the fire between Hezbollah and Israel, just a day before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was also set to visit the region to urge de-escalation.
The escalation followed a night of intense violence in the southern suburbs of Beirut, as well as towns in the south and Bekaa Valley, where dozens of Israeli airstrikes targeted facilities belonging to Hezbollah’s Al-Qard al-Hasan Association.
Since September, Israel has escalated its bombardment of various areas in Lebanon, particularly the southern suburbs and the south. Earlier this month, Israel initiated what it described as a limited ground operation, advancing into some border towns with the intent of pushing Hezbollah fighters south of the Litani River to create a buffer zone along the border.
