Israel Defence Forces carries out fresh strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have struck the Hezbollah "military infrastructure" in Lebanon as a retaliatory move to Sunday's fire, The Times of Israel reported.

The attacks were in reaction to Sunday's fire from Lebanon that was directed against Israel.

Notably, on Sunday morning, six anti-tank guided missiles were fired towards an Israeli town and military outposts near the Lebanon border, killing at least one civilian, according to The Times of Israel.

Nine further rockets were also fired at Nahariya, a city in the north, and adjacent towns, however, there were no reports of any casualties.

The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has been cautioned by the United States and its allies against escalating the conflict in Israel. This comes after the deployment of US military assets to prevent a potential widening of the war, multiple US officials aware of the matter told CNN.

 

At this point, senior administration officials do not believe that Hezbollah is likely to join Hamas' war in force against Israel, and officials think the warnings are having an impact even though there has been some escalation on the border.

A message has been sent to Hezbollah to stay out of the conflict through a number of channels, including the Lebanese government and the Hezbollah-allied Speaker of Lebanon's Parliament, Nabih Berri.

At Israel's request, France has also conveyed to Hezbollah that they must stay out of the war and not escalate further or Israel will respond significantly, a source briefed on the talks said. Those discussions were also coordinated with the US, the source said.

Hezbollah is a highly trained, well-armed and sophisticated military force that also receives Iranian support, so its entry into the conflict would mark a significant escalation.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin has ordered the deployment of a carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean in large part as a message to Hezbollah and its Iranian backers to refrain from entering the war.

US security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters at the White House on Tuesday last week: "Let me be clear, we did not move the carrier for Hamas. We moved the carrier to send a clear message of deterrence to other states or non-state actors that might seek to widen this war."

According to the latest update, 1,300 people have been killed, with over 3600 injured, reported The Jerusalem Post.

Israeli Defence Minister Gallant said that an estimated 150-200 hostages are being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, adding, "We are making every effort to locate them even in this great complexity."