Israel invades Lebanon

IDF announced Tuesday that it had crossed the border into Lebanon for targeted raids

(Image credit: Jalaa Marey / AFP via Getty Images)

published 1 October 2024

What happened

Israel's military said Tuesday morning it had crossed the border into Lebanon for "limited, localized and targeted raids against Hezbollah" aimed at clearing "villages close to the border" that "pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel." Israeli fighter jets continued striking Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold where Israeli bombs days earlier had killed Hassan Nasrallah and other top Hezbollah officials.

"We know that the battle might be long," Naim Qassem, Hezbollah's deputy secretary-general and the highest-ranking official left, said on television Monday, but "we are ready for ground engagement with the enemy if they decide to enter."

Israel has been "emboldened by its recent battlefield gains against Hezbollah and appears intent on delivering a knockout blow to its archenemy," The Associated Press said. But "Hezbollah is a well-trained militia," and while its "capabilities remain unclear," a "ground operation marks a new and potentially risky phase of fighting" for Israel. Hezbollah fought Israel to a stalemate in their last war in 2006.

The Biden administration, worried that Israel's multi-front battle could escalate into a regional war with Iran, is sending a "few thousand" more troops to the Middle East, the Pentagon said Monday. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant the U.S. "agreed on the necessity of dismantling" Hezbollah's "attack infrastructure along the border," but he also "reaffirmed that a diplomatic resolution" is needed "as soon as feasible."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

To continue reading this article...

Create a free account

Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.

Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.

Cancel or pause at any time.

Already a subscriber to The Week?

Unlimited website access is included with Digital and Print + Digital subscriptions.
with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.

Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.