Israel continued airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Tuesday, intensifying its campaign against Hezbollah following US President Donald Trump’s call for Netanyahu to refrain from attacking Beirut. The intervention did not prevent further escalation.
Lebanon’s government stated that Israel would avoid strikes on the Hezbollah-controlled areas of Beirut and Hezbollah would halt attacks on Israel. However, these assurances have not reassured many Lebanese or stopped the broader conflict in southern Lebanon, where Netanyahu vowed it would continue.
In the south, Israeli air strikes and artillery hit several towns, with the Israeli military ordering residents of Nabatiyeh to evacuate before strikes. Hezbollah did not announce new operations but the Israeli military reported intercepting projectiles crossing from Lebanon into Israel.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned that if northern communities are attacked, they would be evacuated and Beirut’s southern suburbs struck. “The test for this policy will become clear in the coming days,” he said.
Faten Al Chehime fled her home in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Monday, just two weeks after returning. Over 1.2 million people have been displaced by the war since Hezbollah fired on Israel in support of Tehran on March 2.
Israel had previously targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs known as Dahiyeh early in the conflict but has only conducted two strikes there since Trump declared a Lebanon ceasefire in April. Tensions spiked on Monday after Netanyahu ordered attacks on Beirut’s southern suburbs, with Iranian state media reporting that Iran halted talks with Washington due to Israeli attacks and warned northern Israel residents they should leave if attacked.
Trump said he asked Netanyahu not to carry out major raids on Beirut and Hezbollah pledged not to attack Israel through intermediaries. No US president has ever spoken directly with Hezbollah designated as a terrorist group by the US.
The Lebanese government plans to seek an expanded ceasefire in talks with Israeli officials in Washington on Wednesday, despite objections from Hezbollah. Since March 2, more than 3,400 people have been killed in Lebanon by Israeli strikes and Israel says 26 soldiers and four civilians were killed in Hezbollah attacks.