Israeli Airstrike Kills Two, Wounds Twenty in Northeastern Lebanon
According to the Israeli military, the attacks were a response to Hezbollah’s earlier rocket strikes in the northern region (AP)
Hezbollah Fires More Than One Hundred Rockets Into Israel
Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah claimed the strikes were in response to Israeli shelling of northern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley region for two consecutive days; both the Israeli and Hezbollah attacks underscore the potential of ongoing skirmishes on the Israel-Lebanon border area spreading farther afield (Reuters)
Hezbollah Stages Drone Strike on Israeli Outpost in Golan Heights
Lebanon’s Hezbollah group said it carried out a drone attack against an Israeli air defense outpost across the border in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (Al Arabiya)
It said the rare attack, in which it deployed four drones, hit their target with “accuracy” in what it said was another operation in support of Palestinian militant groups in Gaza (Reuters).
U.S. Envoy Presses for De-escalation on Israel, Lebanon Border
U.S. Special Envoy Amos Hochstein floated a proposal for de-escalation on the border in a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in Tel Aviv (Times of Israel)
Hochstein had done the same in Beirut on Monday; the United States and partner countries have called for a lasting security pact on the Israel-Lebanon border as skirmishes between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah continue (Times of Israel, AFP)
If tensions with Hezbollah are not managed, conflict could escalate on the Israel-Lebanon border despite a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, Hochstein said; Hochstein and Gallant spoke yesterday about the prospect of reaching an agreement that would see Hezbollah withdraw from the border area, according to an Israeli readout of their meeting (Reuters)
Gallant said that Israel was “committed to the diplomatic process,” but continued attacks from Hezbollah were “dragging the parties to a dangerous escalation” (Telegraph)
U.S. Envoy Warns of Conflict Escalation Between Israel, Lebanon
Amos Hochstein said that a temporary ceasefire in Gaza would not automatically end hostilities across Lebanon’s southern border, where skirmishes have increased in recent weeks (Reuters)
Hezbollah Targets Golan Heights
The Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said it launched a barrage of rockets at the Golan Heights region in response to Israeli strikes on the city of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon; the Israel Defense Forces said another strike in southern Lebanon killed a senior Hezbollah leader (Times of Israel, Reuters)
Israeli Air Strikes Hit Southern Lebanon
According to the Lebanese security sources, the strikes that injured fourteen people hit warehouses and factories, but the specific target was unclear; however, Israel’s military spokesperson said the strikes were aimed at a weapons depot near the port city of Sidon in response to Hezbollah’s previous drone attack (Reuters)
Israel-Lebanon Tensions Escalate in Deadly Strike Exchange
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out several strikes in retaliation for Hezbollah’s rocket fire that resulted in two casualties in northern Israel yesterday, killing four people, including three militants (NYT)
The escalation comes after months of lower-scale violence across the border and Western diplomatic efforts to contain regional tensions (WaPo)
Hezbollah Fires Missiles into Israel, Injures Two
The Lebanese militia said the two separate strikes targeted Israeli soldiers and a police building in Kiryat Shmona; the attacks happened amid de-escalation talks mediated by Western countries, including France and the United States (NYT)
Lebanon Denies Reports of Withdrawal Extension, Orders Israeli Forces to Withdraw From Country by February 18
The announcement by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun came after reports of an extension to the February 18 deadline for Israeli forces to withdraw, a deadline which had already been extended from January 26 (Times of Israel)
Israel reportedly requested to extend its presence in southern Lebanon until February 28 (France24)
Air Strikes Hit Syrian City of Homs, Reportedly Killing at Least Eight
A United Kingdom-based war monitor said that two people from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and at least six civilians were killed in the strikes; the Syrian military blamed Israel for the strikes, but Israel did not immediately comment (AP)
United States Targets Iranian and Hezbollah Financial Network Through Sanctions
Sanctions imposed on three entities and one individual based in Turkey and Lebanon aim to cut critical support to the financial network used by Iran’s Quds Force and Lebanon’s Hezbollah for terrorist activities (Reuters)
Israeli Strike Kills Hezbollah Fighter, One Civilian
The attacks continued a week of cross-border strikes across the region that reflected the multiple actors mobilized following the outbreak of war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas; on Saturday, an Israeli strike in the port city of Tyre killed a Hezbollah commander and two civilians (AP)
Strike Kills Hezbollah Commander in Lebanon
Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said today that commander Wissam Hassan al-Tawil was killed in an air strike in southern Lebanon (NYT)
Unnamed Lebanese officials told Reuters that Israel was responsible; Israel did not immediately comment on the strike, which came after Hezbollah attacks damaged an Israeli military base on Saturday (Reuters)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned yesterday that the war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas “could easily metastasize” to the wider region; Blinken and senior European officials are currently in the region, and Italy said that Group of Seven (G7) countries are working with Israel “to find a rapid way out of the military phase” of the war, which has now passed three months of conflict (Reuters)
Blast in Beirut Suburb Kills Senior Hamas Leader
The Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah blamed Israel for the attack(WaPo)
While Israel did not publicly claim responsibility for the blast near Beirut, a U.S. defense official told reporters that Israel was responsible and French President Emmanuel Macron called on Israel to refrain from escalation in Lebanon (Le Monde)
Israel and Hezbollah have been trading strikes across the Israel-Lebanon border since October 7, and Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah warned Israel in August that a strike inside Lebanon’s border would invoke a strong reaction (WaPo)
Senior Israeli Official Warns of Stronger Military Action Against Hezbollah in Lebanon
Benny Gantz, one of three members of Israel’s war cabinet, said at a press conference that “the stopwatch for a diplomatic solution is running out” at Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, where the Israeli military has clashed with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah since the Palestinian militant group Hamas’s October 7 attacks on Israel (FT)
Violence Escalates in Confrontation Between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah
Israel increased the intensity and scope of airstrikes in response to continued Hezbollah drone and missile attacks on Israeli positions, and some people reported seeing warplanes flying over Beirut (Reuters)
Israeli National Security Advisor Indicates Possible War Against Hezbollah
National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said that Israel was eliminating Hamas “seventeen years too late” and could not tolerate the possibility of a similar attack from Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force in the future; he added that residents will not return to border communities until the threat is eliminated (Times of Israel)
Israeli Defense Minister: Hezbollah Has Launched Over 1,000 Aerial Attacks Since October 8
The Israel Defense Forces and Hezbollah continue to exchange artillery fire and drone strikes almost daily; the strikes often result in few or no casualties but have displaced thousands and disrupted the local economy (Times of Israel)
Hezbollah Strikes Wound Seven Soldiers and Ten Civilians Along Israeli Border
The attack was among the most serious involving civilians along Israel’s northern border, and the Israeli military said it has “operational plans to change the security status in the north” to make it safe for Israeli residents to return to their homes (AP)
France to Send Armored Vehicles to Lebanese Army
France’s defense minister said the dozens of vehicles will help Lebanon carry out patrol missions amid growing difficulties in maintaining security in the country (Reuters)
UN to Cut Number of Refugees Receiving Cash Assistance in Lebanon by Nearly a Third
A UN budget shortfall led to the reduction in aid for Lebanon, which is set to take place next year and will affect eighty-eight thousand families. A program for families to receive extra assistance during the winter for heightened fuel expenses will also be halted (ABC)
The group said it shot down an Israeli drone, and the group reportedly hopes to use its surface-to-air missiles to reduce casualties; Israeli strikes have killed forty-seven Hezbollah members since the beginning of the war with Hamas (Reuters)
Hezbollah Leader Meets with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad Representatives in Lebanon
The Iran-backed groups discussed what their alliance needs to do to “achieve a real victory for the resistance” (Reuters)
Lebanese PM Visits Border with Israel
Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s visit comes amid efforts to prevent Israel’s war with Hamas from spreading to Lebanon and two days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israel’s northern border (AP)