Israel has notified the United States of its intention to launch a limited ground invasion of Lebanon, US officials said.
Officials told the BBC’s US partner CBS that the operation could begin as early as Monday.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant earlier told troops near the Lebanese border that Israel was ready to deploy forces “by air, sea and land” to target Hezbollah, adding that the military was not prepared for a ground invasion. He hinted that he was ready.
Hezbollah’s deputy leader said they were ready for a ground attack by Israel.
There have been calls for restraint internationally, with the UN Secretary-General and EU foreign policy chief urging Israel to avoid a ground invasion.
Reuters, citing Lebanese security sources, said the Lebanese army was withdrawing its troops on the southern border at least five kilometers north.
Galan told Israeli forces on the border that they would use “all means at our disposal” to allow the displaced people to return to their northern homes.
In a short video, he said Friday’s “removal” of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut was “a very important step, but it’s not the whole story.”
“Everything that needs to be done will be done,” he added, adding, “We will use all force in the air, sea and land.”
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Monday that the military was “intensifying its combat readiness” and soldiers were training near the northern border.
The New York Times reported that Israeli special forces have already briefly invaded Lebanese territory in preparation for a possible broader invasion.
Jededeh Marjayoun, the head of a predominantly Christian Lebanese village less than 10 kilometers from the border, said on Monday that two local residents received a phone call that appeared to be from the Israeli military asking them to evacuate the area as soon as possible. He told Reuters that he had received it.
Hezbollah’s deputy chief, Sheikh Naim Qasem, said Israel was ready for a ground attack. He said the group’s attacks on Israel so far have been “minimal” and added that the fighting could be prolonged.
European Union member states called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council. “Further military intervention would dramatically worsen the situation and needs to be avoided,” European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres “does not want to see any ground invasion” by Israel into Lebanon, a spokesman for the secretary-general said.
On Monday, US President Joe Biden said: “There must be a ceasefire now.”
Asked if he was satisfied with Israel’s plan to invade across the border, Biden told reporters: “I’m more concerned than you know, and I’m relieved that they will stop it.” ” he said.
“The best way forward is an immediate ceasefire,” British Foreign Secretary David Lamy told reporters.
Meanwhile, both Israel and Hamas confirmed that Lebanese Hamas head Fateh Sherif Abu el-Amin was killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli military said Sherif was “in charge of coordinating Hamas terrorist activities and Hezbollah operatives in Lebanon.”
Three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) were killed in another Israeli attack in the Kola neighborhood of central Beirut early Monday, the Palestinian armed group said in a statement.
The statement names those killed as Military Security Chief Mohammad Abdel Aal, military commander Imad Odeh, and militant Abdel Rahman Abdel Aal.
Jinan Saad, head of communications for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Lebanon, told the BBC after the attack in Kola: “We don’t actually know where is safe and where is not safe.”
“What’s safe today may not be safe an hour later or tomorrow,” she says.
Israeli warplanes also attacked Yemen’s Houthi-controlled Hodeidah port on Sunday, causing a huge explosion.
Cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, which had been sporadic until then, escalated on October 8, 2023, the day after an unprecedented attack on Israel by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip, and Hezbollah They opened fire on Israeli positions in solidarity with the Palestinians.
But things have escalated dramatically in recent weeks.
Hezbollah has been involved in massive mass attacks, including exploding pagers and walkie-talkies, a spate of assassinations of Hezbollah military commanders, devastating airstrikes that killed civilians, and the use of a bunker-busting bomb in Beirut that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Friday. experienced casualties.
Lebanese authorities say more than 1,000 people have been killed in the past two weeks and up to 1 million people may now be displaced.
