Israel military says hits seven Hezbollah sites in overnight air strikes in southern Lebanon

Israeli military said that it struck six Hezbollah "terrorist infrastructure sites" and a weapons storage facility in southern Lebanon overnight; Lebanon‘s Hezbollah group said 20 of its members were killed

The Israeli military said on Thursday (September 19, 2024) it struck six Hezbollah "terrorist infrastructure sites" and a weapons storage facility in southern Lebanon overnight, as fears grew of a full-blown war.

The air force "struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure sites in the areas of Chihine, Tayibe, Blida, Meiss El Jabal, Aitaroun and Kfarkela in southern Lebanon, as well as a Hezbollah weapons storage facility in the area of Khiam in southern Lebanon," a military statement said.

Turkey on Thursday (September 19, 2024) accused Israel of seeking to expand the war in Gaza to Lebanon with the “alarming” wave of deadly explosions that swept though Hezbollah strongholds. 

“The escalation in the region is alarming,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on state-run media. “We see Israel mounting its attacks towards Lebanon step by step.”

Meanwhile, Lebanon‘s Hezbollah group said 20 of its members were killed, with a source close to the group telling AFP on Thursday (September 19, 2024) that they had died in walkie-talkie blasts blamed on Israel the day before.

The group sent separate death notices for each member from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning, saying they had been killed “on the road to Jerusalem” -- the phrase used by Hezbollah to refer to fighters killed by Israel.

Published - September 19, 2024 03:43 pm IST