Israel expands strikes on Lebanon, cuts bridge over Litani river
Israel expanded its strikes in Lebanon on Friday, targeting multiple areas including a bridge over the Litani river that it said Hezbollah had been using as a passageway for its fighters.
The raids came after Israel threatened to also carry out a ground operation to disarm Hezbollah if the Lebanese government does not do so.
The group launched new attacks against Israeli forces Friday on the 14th day of the Middle East war.
Israel targeted a bridge over the Litani River between the towns of Zrariyeh and Tayr Felsay, according to state media. The river divides southern Lebanon in two.
In a statement, the Israeli army described the river as a "key crossing" for Hezbollah "from northern to southern Lebanon, to build up its power and prepare for combat".
The attack is the first on Lebanese civilian infrastructure to be acknowledged by Israel since new fighting erupted with Hezbollah following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.
On Thursday Israel had launched a series of air strikes on targets in the heart of Beirut and its southern suburbs. Israel also said it struck Hezbollah "command centers" in several waves of strikes.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he told the Lebanese government that "you are playing with fire if you continue allowing Hezbollah to operate, in violation of your commitment to disarm it".
Overnight Thursday into Friday, the Israeli army carried out new air raids, targeting an apartment near Bourj Hammoud in Beirut's northern suburbs, an area that had remained untouched by the war.
Israeli strikes hit several other places, including another apartment on the outskirts of the southern city of Sidon.
In the eastern town of Bar Elias, an air strike targeted a local official from Islamist group the Jamaa Islamiya, killing his two sons, NNA said.
Israel's army also renewed its evacuation warning for Beirut's southern suburbs. On Thursday it had issued a similar order to residents across a large area about 20 kilometers north of the Litani river.
The order enlarges the zone in southern Lebanon in which residents have been told to leave to cover more than 40 kilometers from the Lebanon-Israel border.
The war has displaced more than 800,000 people in Lebanon, according to the government.
On Friday afternoon U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will launch a humanitarian appeal to help the displaced during a visit to Beirut.
Source: Agence France Presse
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