Israel Launches Intense Airstrikes in Southern Lebanon Amid Calls for Escalation

The Israeli military intensified its air campaign in southern Lebanon on Monday, coinciding with statements from two far-right ministers urging a broader escalation that included threats against Beirut.

These strikes occur while the United States and Iran work toward finalising a deal to de-escalate the broader Middle East conflict, a pact that could also address the Lebanon front, where Israel and Hezbollah have been engaged in hostilities since early March.

Despite a ceasefire that took effect on April 17, Israel and Hezbollah have persisted in near-daily exchanges of fire.

In the early hours of Monday, dozens of Israeli strikes hit multiple towns and villages across southern Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of three individuals who were traveling in two cars and on a motorcycle, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA).

Later on Monday, additional Israeli airstrikes struck several towns in the vicinity of the historic city of Tyre, as reported by NNA.

These attacks followed Israeli evacuation orders for ten villages, which accused Hezbollah of violating the truce.

‘In light of Hezbollah’s breach of the ceasefire, the Israel Defense Forces are compelled to respond with force,’ said Colonel Avichay Adraee, an IDF spokesman who communicates in Arabic, on his social-media channel, where he listed the affected villages.

Hezbollah, an Iran-aligned Lebanese militia, has routinely launched drone attacks against Israeli targets both within Lebanon and across the border, including several operations on Monday.

Later that same day, Adraee issued an additional evacuation warning for residents of a building in Rashidieh and two structures in Burj al-Shamali, areas near Tyre.

Lebanese authorities report that Israeli strikes since early March have resulted in more than 3,100 fatalities.

The Israeli military announced on Monday that a soldier was killed the previous day in southern Lebanon.

This brings the total number of Israeli soldiers killed since the conflict with Hezbollah began to 23, with one civilian contractor also reported dead.

— ‘Buildings must fall’ —

Two far-right ministers called for an expansion of Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon.

‘There is an urgent need to halt the threat posed by Hezbollah’s explosive drones,’ Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who resides in an occupied West Bank settlement, wrote on Telegram.

‘For every explosive drone strike, ten buildings must be destroyed in Beirut.’

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, a prominent far-right figure, called for a return to intense warfare and for Israel to take control of the Zahrani River, which lies north of the Litani River.

The Israeli army, which controls a strip of land roughly 10 kilometres deep inside Lebanese territory, has designated the Litani River as the boundary for the area it aims to clear of Hezbollah fighters.

On Monday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun defended his decision to engage in talks with Israel, reiterating that a full Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon is non-negotiable.

Lebanon and Israel, which lack diplomatic relations, are convening another round of negotiations in Washington on June 2 and 3, preceded by a meeting of military officials from both sides at the Pentagon on May 29.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem reiterated his opposition to direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel on Sunday evening, reaffirming his refusal to permit his organization to disarm.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned those remarks, accusing Qassem of calling for the overthrow of the Lebanese government and of seeking to plunge Lebanon back into chaos.

In response, Hezbollah MP Ali Ammar called on the U.S. administration on Monday to cease interfering in Lebanese affairs and destabilising the country.

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