On October 14, Israeli forces expanded their incursion into Lebanon in a strike that brought down houses in a village north of Aitou. At least 18 people were killed by the airstrike in the northern town, according to the Lebanese Red Cross. A house rented to a group of families who were forced from their home in Khiyam, a northern town, was shot dead in the airstrike. 

The strike marked a significant escalation of Israel’s two-week war with Hezbollah militants. Millions of Israelis took shelter as projectiles fired from across the Lebanese border rained down on their towns.

Until now, the military operations carried out by Israelis were mainly focused on southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, and the areas surrounding Beirut. The Aitou attack, a Christian-majority town, witnesses Israel’s enlarged field of actions. Not only three people lost their lives, but four others are said to have been injured.

The Israeli army has issued an evacuation order to 25 villages in the south of Lebanon, making the villagers move north of the river Awali. The entire advance of the Israeli forces toward the interior parts of Lebanon has been a strategic shift in confrontation in the form of mounting attacks against the Hezbollah fighters.

Rockets and missiles launched from across the border in Lebanon targeted central Israel: Israeli military said it had intercepted three of them before they could land and shot back at the launch site. No casualties were reported in the central Israeli region.

This conflict, which began a year ago when Hezbollah started firing rockets into Israel in support of Palestinian militants, in particular Hamas, has raged throughout that time, with tensions reaching sharply in the past few weeks. Thousands have been killed, according to the Lebanese government, with more than 2,309 fatalities as Israeli airstrikes continue across Lebanon. Both civilians and combatants have been killed.

Besides the military war, Israel is in dispute with the United Nations peacekeeping force, UNIFIL, operating in southern Lebanon. Israeli forces believe UNIFIL has protected Hezbollah militias, while UNIFIL has tallied violations by Israeli forces. Israel this week discredited claims that its tanks had overrun a U.N. base in response to claims from the U.N.

The Israeli military has confirmed that Muhammad Kamel Naim, the Hezbollah commander of its anti-tank missile unit, was killed when its rocket hit the Nabatieh region in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah was not commenting on the incident.

As the fighting continued, the U.S. embassy in Lebanon told its citizens they should leave the country, stating that the government had arranged evacuation flights that would not be available indefinitely. The Pentagon said it would send additional U.S. troops to Israel and deploy advanced anti-missile systems.

Moreover, the Israeli military said Hezbollah runs its entire southern Lebanon tunnel network over hundreds of kilometres. This system forms the bedrock of the Iranian-backed militia’s strategy. It would be used by fighters to carry out operations and even help them evade aircraft attacks by the Israeli military. So far, Israel has destroyed scores of Hezbollah tunnels, rocket launchers, and command posts during its ground operation near the border.

The European Union has expressed concern as Israel continues to attack UNIFIL forces. The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, condemned the failure of swift condemnation by its member states on the acts, declaring them “unacceptable.” Spain has called for the European Union to suspend its free trade agreement with Israel due to its aggressive actions in both Lebanon and Gaza.

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