Israeli military launches strikes across southern Lebanon against what it says are Hezbollah targets

(CNN) — The Israeli military carried out a series of strikes across southern Lebanon on Thursday, saying it was targeting Hezbollah in response to what it described as the militant group’s attempts to rebuild operations in the region.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the strikes targeted weapons storage facilities belonging to Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. It claimed the group was working to “reestablish terrorist infrastructure” in southern Lebanon.

However, Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun claimed the strikes had violated international humanitarian law by targeting civilians and forcing them to flee their homes. He denounced the action as a “fully fledged crime.”

“The more Lebanon expresses its openness to the path of peaceful negotiation to resolve outstanding issues with Israel, the more Israel intensifies its aggression against Lebanese sovereignty,” Aoun wrote on X.

Prior to the strikes, the IDF’s Arabic language spokesperson Avichay Adraee had issued multiple warnings to residents of several villages.

“You are located in a building used by Hezbollah. For your safety, you are requested to evacuate immediately to a distance of at least 500 meters from the building. Remaining in the vicinity of these structures endangers your lives,” Adraee said in one of three evacuation notices given Thursday afternoon.

Later Thursday, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said it had observed several strikes within its area of operations in southern Lebanon, including in Tayr Dibbah, Taibe, and Ayta al Jabal, and warned the action threatened the safety of civilians.

UNIFIL called on Israel to stop the attacks, which it said constituted “clear violations” of Security Council resolution 1701, a measure that was adopted to end a 34-day war between Israel and Lebanon in 2006 and which called for a full cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

“Any military action, especially on such a destructive scale, threatens the safety of civilians and undermines the progress being made toward a political and diplomatic solution,” the statement continued.

Fighting between Israel and Hezbollah ramped up a day after the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel, when the Lebanese militant organization launched attacks on Israeli positions in what it said was an act of solidarity. In October 2024, Israel launched what it described as a “a limited ground operation” in southern Lebanon targeting Hezbollah.

In November 2024, a US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, under which Israel was to halt offensive operations and gradually withdraw from positions inside southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah was to pull back heavy weaponry north of the Litani River. However, Israel has continued to strike targets in Lebanon, citing Hezbollah violations of the truce, claims the group has denied.

The Lebanese Army said in a short statement Thursday that despite the Israeli strikes, “it remains in close coordination” with UNIFIL and insisted that their partnership still functions on a “high level of trust and cooperation.”

The Israeli security cabinet was expected to convene Thursday evening, according to two Israeli officials. One of the officials told CNN that Lebanon would be among the topics discussed.

The officials said Israel has been warning in recent weeks against what they described as “Hezbollah attempts to rearm and reestablish its offensive capabilities.”

Last week Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened security consultations with some cabinet ministers to discuss Israeli reactions. According to an Israeli source with knowledge of the discussion, the military recommended launching a wide scale operation against Hezbollah’s alleged rearming attempts.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar also said last week that Israel “cannot bury its head in the sand” as Hezbollah “continues to intensify its efforts to rebuild and rearm.”

The Lebanese president made headlines in recent days after suggesting that his country had “no choice” but to negotiate with Israel directly.

“Lebanon has no choice but negotiation, because in politics there are three fields of action: diplomacy, economy and war. When war leads to no result, what else can be done?,” he was cited as saying by local media, widely believed to be referring to Israel.

In a statement on Thursday, Hezbollah accused Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire reached in November 2024, and of “blackmailing” the Lebanese government into recognizing Israel.

“(Lebanon) is absolutely not interested in succumbing to aggressive blackmail or being drawn into political negotiations with the Zionist enemy. Such negotiations serve no national interest and pose existential risks to the Lebanese entity and its sovereignty,” it said, affirming the group’s “legitimate right to resist occupation and aggression.”

Israel’s military action comes days after US Special Envoy Tom Barack said Lebanon was a “failed state” run by “dinosaurs.” Barrack voiced doubts about whether authorities will be able to disarm Hezbollah, which he said had more vastly more weapons than Lebanon’s armed forces.

“In our opinion, it’s not reasonable to tell Lebanon, ‘Forcibly disarm one of your political parties.’ Everybody’s scared to death to go into civil war. The idea is: What can you do to have Hezbollah not utilize those rockets and missiles,” he said.