Israel, which has been fighting with Hamas in Gaza for almost a year, sent its troops into southern Lebanon after two weeks of intense air strikes, in an escalating conflict that risks drawing in the United States and Iran.
Israel's military said on Thursday it had "eliminated" Rawhi Mushtaha, the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, along with senior security officials Sameh al-Siraj and Sami Oudeh in strikes three months ago.
In Lebanon, an air strike on the municipality building of the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil killed 15 Hezbollah members, Israel said.
Lebanon's health ministry said the death toll in the Beirut strike had climbed to nine and the Islamic Health Authority, a Hezbollah-linked civil defence group, said seven of its staff including two medics had been killed.
Another sleepless night in Beirut. Counting the blasts shaking the city. No warning sirens. Not knowing what's next. Only that uncertainty lies ahead. Anxiety and fear are omnipresent.— Jeanine Hennis (@JeanineHennis) October 3, 2024
The strike had targeted a building in the district of Bachoura a few hundred meters from parliament, the closest an Israeli strike has come to the central downtown district of Beirut.
Israel said it had conducted a precise air strike on the Lebanese capital.
"Another sleepless night in Beirut. Counting the blasts shaking the city. No warning sirens. Not knowing what's next. Only that uncertainty lies ahead. Anxiety and fear are omnipresent," UN special co-ordinator in Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, said on X on Thursday.
Israel said on Wednesday eight soldiers were killed in ground combat in south Lebanon as its forces thrust into its northern neighbour.
Iran launched its largest-ever assault on Israel on Tuesday in what it said was retaliation for Israel's assassination of senior Hamas and Hezbollah leaders and its operations in Gaza and Lebanon.
Tehran said its attack was over, barring further provocation, but Israel and the United States have promised to hit back hard.
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani called for serious ceasefire efforts to stop Israel's "aggression" in Lebanon and said no peace was possible in the Middle East without the creation of a Palestinian state.
Three Israeli missiles also hit the southern Beruit suburb of Dahiyeh. (AP PHOTO)
What is happening in the Middle East was a "collective genocide", he said at the Asia Co-operation Dialogue summit in Doha, adding his country had always warned of Israel's "impunity".
At the same gathering, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that any crossing of Iran's red lines would be met with "a decisive response by our armed forces".
More than a dozen Israeli missiles also hit the southern suburb of Dahiyeh, where Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed last week.
The Lebanese border front opened after Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel on October 8 in support of Hamas.
Since then Israel has assassinated many Hamas and Hezbollah leaders and commanders.
The elimination of Nasrallah dealt a major blow to Hezbollah and removed Iran's most influential Arab ally.
Iran's other regional allies - Yemen's Houthis and armed groups in Iraq - have also launched attacks in the region in support of Hamas in the war in Gaza.
About 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced by Israeli attacks, Lebanon's government says. (AP PHOTO)
The Houthis, who have been firing missiles, sending armed drones and launching boats laden with explosives at commercial ships with ties to Israeli, US and UK entities since 2023, said they launched a successful attack on Israel's commercial capital Tel Aviv with drones.
Israel said it intercepted a suspicious aerial target in the area of central Israel early on Thursday.
Israel's military urged residents of Lebanese villages who had fled their homes not to return until further notice.
More than 1900 people have been killed and more than 9000 wounded in Lebanon in almost a year of cross-border fighting, with most of the deaths occurring in the past two weeks.
About 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced by Israeli attacks.
The Israeli military said regular infantry and armoured units joined ground operations in Lebanon on Wednesday as Iran's missile attack and Israel's promise of retaliation fanned concern of a wider conflict in the oil-producing Middle East.
Western nations have drafted contingency plans to remove citizens from Lebanon, but none have launched a large-scale military evacuation yet, though some are chartering aircraft as Beirut airport stays open.
