What Just Happened Between Israel And Hezbollah? Here's What You Need To Know
Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants launched strikes at one another last night, in a major escalation of violence in the Middle East.
The two have exchanged fire repeatedly since last October, when the Israel-Hamas war began, but these recent attacks suggest hostilities have intensified.
Israel claims its warplanes hit the Lebanese group after intelligence suggested the Iran-backed Shia Muslim group was going to strike out at it first.
Hezbollah later confirmed it had attacked Israel in the first phase of a plan against its neighbouring country.
Lebanon confirmed this morning that three people had been killed by the Israeli strikes.
The battle comes after Israel took responsibility for killing senior Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in July.
HuffPost UK looks at what we know so far, what this means for the ongoing tensions in the Middle East and what might happen next.
What does Israel say happened last night?
Israel declared a 48-hour state of emergency early on Sunday morning, restricting civilian movement, while sirens sounded across northern Israel.
Its forces supposedly had intelligence that Hezbollah was about to launch an attack into Israel as retaliation for the Hezbollah commander who was killed, and therefore it launched its own “pre-emptive” strikes on Lebanon.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said Hezbollah “has just launched over 150 projectiles from Lebanon towards Israeli territory”.
“In a self-defence act to remove these threats, the IDF is striking terror targets,” IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, adding later that “dozens” of Israeli air force jets were striking targets across southern Lebanon.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu called an urgent meeting of his security cabinet, and said: “Whoever harms us, we harm them.”
Israel also claimed to have sent 100 warplanes to hit more than 40 Hezbollah launch areas, wiping out rocket launcher barrels expected to head towards Israel.
However, Israel said it is not looking for “an all-out war” in the Middle East, according to foreign minister Israel Katz.
The country claims to be “acting to protect its citizens and territory” against a so-called “axis of evil” led by Iran”, adding that Israel will “act according to developments on the ground”.
What does Hezbollah say happened last night?
Hezbollah has denied that Israel’s strikes were “pre-emptive” and played down Israel’s claim that its strikes had caused significant damage.
The enemy’s claims about the pre-emptive action it carried out, the targets it struck and its disruption of the resistance’s [Hezbollah’s] attack, are empty,” it said.
It also alleged Israel was not actually able to strike certain targets, saying that “contradicts the facts on the ground and will be refuted” later.
Hezbollah said it fired more than 320 rockets and drones at 11 military sites in northern Israel, as the “first phase” of strikes against the country.
It added that its strike were motivated by “the brutal Zionist aggression, which led to the martyrdom of Fuad Shukr”.
It claimed to have targeted an identified “special military target as well as Israel’s Iron Dome platforms and other sites but that the full response would take some time”.
Hezbollah alleged number of Israel’s sites and barracks would be targeted and that the group will stand strongly against “Zionist transgression or aggression” if civilians are harmed.
“Punishment will be very severe and harsh,” the militants added.
Why is this such an important moment for the Middle East?
Hezbollah is backed by Iran, much like Hamas, the Palestinian militants based in Gaza who are currently in an all-out war against Israel.
That conflict escalated on October 7, when Hamas killed 1,200 people on Israeli soil and took a further 250 people hostage.
Israel then declared war and invaded Gaza. Local authorities say 40,000 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since the war began.
A fight between Hezbollah and Israel could signify the Israel-Hamas war is spreading across the Middle East, creating two fronts to the already bloody conflict.
It also raises concerns for how Iran itself may act, considering the Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran – the Iranian capital – last month, too.
Israel has not taken responsibility for that particular death but it has been widely blamed for it – and so Iran could follow Hezbollah’s lead and retaliate.
What happens next?
For today at least, it looks like there may be no further attacks, as Hezbollah said it had “completed” today’s strikes.
However, Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks are expected to start again in Cairo soon, and there’s a risk they could be undone by the last 24 hours.
The danger is that more violence could occur and escalate into a larger cycle of violence.
“We’re very concerned. This is a major escalation,” chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden, told Sky News.
“There’s been a fear of a major escalation, even as this unfolds, the UK and the international community would urge all parties not to escalate further and to avoid a major regional war.
“We hope this doesn’t turn out to be that, and we hope that afterwards we can de-escalate the situation.”