Israeli military says it has launched ground invasion of Lebanon
The Israeli military said its forces launched a "targeted and limited" invasion of southern Lebanon late on Monday, amid a flurry of air strikes on the capital Beirut and other densely populated areas, as Lebanese media said there were no confirmations yet that Israeli troops had entered the country.
A statement from the Israeli army said that it was targeting villages in localised raids near the boundary that "pose an immediate and real threat to Israeli settlements on the northern border".
Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli forces attacked the towns of Bint Jbeil, Tayri, Kounine and Blida, all just north of the border with Israel.
Sources on the ground told Al-Mayadeen TV, which is close to Hezbollah, that there were no indications that Israeli soldiers crossed the boundary into Lebanon as of Tuesday morning.
Earlier on Monday Lebanese troops pulled back five kilometres from their positions on the southern border while the Israeli military declared three areas in northern Israel as "closed military zones".
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In a public address on Monday from Sheikh Naim Qassem, Hezbollah's deputy leader, Hezbollah remained defiant.
"We are quite ready, if the Israelis want a ground incursion, the resistance forces are ready for that," Qassem declared.
Israeli tanks and soldiers have been massing at the northern border for days, according to open-source imagery. Israeli forces have also been conducting commando-style raids against Hezbollah inside Lebanon which analysts say are designed to lay the groundwork for a larger deployment of forces.
A US official in the region told Middle East Eye on Saturday that Israeli officials warned the US that they planned to launch a ground invasion.
The US State Department on Monday confirmed that Israel is conducting "limited" ground operations in southern Lebanon.
"This is what they have informed us that they are currently conducting, which are limited operations targeting Hezbollah infrastructure near the border," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters.
The US has maintained that Israel has a right to defend itself against Hezbollah, accusing the group of provoking Israel, but said that it is committed to a diplomatic solution and is seeking a ceasefire.
US President Joe Biden said on Monday that he wanted a "ceasefire now".
The US took further steps to bolster its military posture.
The Pentagon said the US was sending to the Middle East “a few thousand” more troops who would come from multiple fighter jet squadrons.
Meanwhile, United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres said he opposed "any invasion of Lebanon".
Hezbollah and Israel both exchanged fire across the border. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, Unifil, is no longer able to patrol southern Lebanon as a result of fighting, the UN said.
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