Concern over a possible full-scale Israel-Hezbollah war grows as IDF forces move to the Lebanon border after the exploding pager attack.
The powerful Iran-backed militant group continued to strike what it called military targets in northern Israel Thursday after thousands of its members were injured and several killed in an apparent and other communication devices. The Israel Defense Forces said it was striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon « to degrade Hezbollah’s terrorist capabilities and infrastructure. »
« The Hezbollah terrorist organization has turned southern Lebanon into a combat zone. For decades, Hezbollah has weaponized civilian homes, dug tunnels beneath them, and used civilians as human shields », the IDF said in a statement. « The IDF is operating to bring security to northern Israel in order to enable the return of residents to their homes, as well as to achieve of all of the war goals. »
Hezbollah had vowed to retaliate against Israel for the exploding device attacks. Israeli officials have not publicly taken responsibility for the explosions, which killed at least 32 people and wounded some 3,000, according to Lebanese health officials. U.S. officials said the American government and military had no role in the device attacks, but CBS News has learned that the U.S. did get a heads up from Israel about 20 minutes before the operations began in Lebanon on Tuesday, though there were no specific details shared about the methods to be used.
U.S. officials said Wednesday that the Biden administration did not believe a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah was inevitable, but it remained unclear how significant any further Hezbollah retaliation over the coming days could be.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday that his country’s war with Iran’s so-called proxy groups in the region had entered a « new phase », announcing a shift to northern Israel after 11 months of intense .
« The center of gravity is shifting to the north through the diversion of forces and resources », Gallant said.
The Israel Defense Forces moved its 98th Division — comprised of several commando brigades — to Israel’s north on Wednesday, a U.S. official and another source familiar told CBS News. The division had been fighting in Gaza.
« We are at the start of a new phase in the war », Gallant said Wednesday, adding that it would require « courage, determination and perseverance. »
Shortly after Hamas sparked the ongoing war in Gaza with its Oct. 7 attack, its Hezbollah allies began firing rockets and drones at Israel from their strongholds across the border in southern Lebanon. Since then, Hezbollah and the Israeli military have exchanged fire almost daily, forcing tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border to evacuate their homes.
« We all feel suffocated by the situation. We don’t breathe », Sarit Zehavi, an Israeli researcher focused who worked for 15 years in Israeli military intelligence and lives in northern Israel, told CBS News.
