BEIRUT (AP) — Israel launched small ground raids against Hezbollah, officials said Monday, and it declared three of its northern communities as a “closed military zone” as signals grew that more forces could soon be sent into Lebanon to fight the Iran-backed militants.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Israel informed the U.S. about the raids, which he said were described as “limited operations focused on Hezbollah infrastructure near the border.”
There were no reports of direct clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants on Lebanese soil. The last time the two enemies engaged in ground combat was a monthlong war in 2006.
But a Western official, a diplomat in Cairo whose country is directly involved in de-escalation efforts, said an Israeli ground operation in Lebanon is “imminent.” The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said Israel had shared its plans with the U.S. and other Western allies, and conveyed the operation will “be limited.”
Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire almost every day since the war in Gaza began. The fighting has displaced tens of thousands of people in Israel and Lebanon. Israel says it will continue to strike Hezbollah until it is safe for Israelis displaced from border communities to return to their homes. Hezbollah has promised to keep firing rockets into Israel until there is a cease-fire in Gaza.
It was not clear if Israel had made a final decision on a broader ground operation in Lebanon.
Early on Monday, Hezbollah vowed to keep fighting even after its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah and other top officials were recently wiped out by Israeli strikes.
Israel’s order restricting entry and exit from the northern communities of Metula, Misgav Am and Kfar Giladi does not necessarily mean Israeli troops will invade Lebanon immediately. Areas can also be declared closed military zones if an imminent threat is detected.
But the Israeli army has heavily beefed up forces along the border with Lebanon in recent days, and commanders have said they are prepared to send in forces if the government gives the order.
Chris Coyle, a resident of northern Israel, said the army had erected gates and checkpoints throughout the region and positioned scores of tanks along the border in recent days. “They’re certainly getting ready to go in,” he said.
In the nearby Golan Heights, an Associated Press reporter heard the sounds of Israeli artillery fire and explosions in southern Lebanon. Israeli forces also fired flares into Lebanon.
Israeli strikes have killed Nasrallah and six of his top commanders and officials in the last 10 days. They have also hit what the military says are thousands of militant targets across large parts of Lebanon. Over 1,000 people have been killed in the country in the past two weeks, nearly a quarter of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry.
Early Monday, an airstrike hit a residential building in central Beirut, killing three Palestinian militants, as Israel appeared to send a clear message that no part of Lebanon is out of bounds.
