Israel pounds Lebanon, pressuring Hezbollah after killing its leader
Smoke billows over Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Sin El Fil, Lebanon, September 29, 2024. PHOTO / REUTERS
What you need to know:
- The strikes took place as Israel attacked more targets in Lebanon, where its intensifying bombardment over two weeks has killed a string of top Hezbollah leaders
Israel said it bombed Houthi targets in Yemen on Sunday and mounted further airstrikes in Lebanon, expanding its confrontation with Iran's allies in the region two days after killing the Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
The airstrikes on Yemen's port of Hodeidah were a response to Houthi missile attacks on Israel in recent days, Israel said, amid fears that Middle East fighting could spin out of control and draw in Iran and the United States, Israel's main ally.
The Houthi-run health ministry said at least four people were killed and 29 wounded.
The strikes took place as Israel attacked more targets in Lebanon, where its intensifying bombardment over two weeks has killed a string of top Hezbollah leaders and driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes.
Lebanon's Health Ministry said Israeli strikes on Sunday had killed at least 105 people, including 32 in Ain Deleb in the south and 33 people in Baalbek-Hermel in the northeast, and that 14 medics had been killed in air strikes over the past two days.
Israel on Sunday vowed to keep up its assault.
"We need to keep hitting Hezbollah hard," Israel's military chief of staff Herzi Halevi said.
Israeli drones hovered over Beirut overnight and for much of Sunday, with the loud blasts of new airstrikes echoing around the Lebanese capital.
Hezbollah and Israel have been trading fire across the border since the start of the war in Gaza, which was triggered by the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants. Yemen's Houthis have launched sporadic attacks on Israel throughout that time and disrupted Red Sea shipping.
Israel rapidly ramped up its attacks on Hezbollah two weeks ago, killing much of the group's leadership, as it aims to make its northern areas safe for residents to return to their homes. Israel's defense minister is now discussing widening the offensive.
Nasrallah's death dealt a particularly significant blow to the group he led for 32 years, and it was followed by new Hezbollah rocket fire on Israel. Iran said his death would be avenged.
