Explosions and shelling have struck border towns in Lebanon, districts in the capital Beirut, and a building in the massive Palestinian refugee camp of Ain al-Hilweh, near the Lebanese city of Sidon, according to one international outlet.
A popular Syrian media anchor was one of three persons killed by Israeli attacks in Damascus, according to the country’s main news agency.
The US has been informed that “limited” border invasions on Hezbollah have begun, potentially signaling the start of a widely feared ground assault.
The Israeli military claimed in a statement that its targets were in villages near the border that posed “an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel.” It added that the air force and artillery were helping ground forces with “precise strikes.”
It comes just days after Israel assassinated the leader of the Lebanese armed group, Hassan Nasrallah.
The ground assault signals an increasing battle in the Middle East between Israel and Iran-backed militants, which now threatens to involve both the United States and Iran.