Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to strike Hezbollah without mercy on Monday, following the Iran-backed group's deadliest attack on Israel since the war began in late September. Hezbollah's drone assault on an Israeli base resulted in the deaths of four soldiers and injured 60 others, according to United Hatzalah, an Israeli volunteer rescue service.
Netanyahu pledged to continue striking Hezbollah across all of Lebanon, including Beirut, during a visit to the base near Binyamina, south of Haifa. Hezbollah claimed the attack was in response to recent Israeli strikes, one of which, according to Lebanon's health ministry, killed at least 22 people in central Beirut.
Since Israel escalated its bombing campaign against targets in Lebanon on September 23, the conflict has claimed at least 1,315 lives, according to an AFP tally based on Lebanese health ministry figures. New air strikes have continued to target areas around Lebanon, including a northern Christian-majority village where at least 21 people were killed, according to the health ministry.
In the aftermath of the attack, a restaurant manager near the Binyamina base reported hearing a loud explosion followed by the arrival of numerous ambulances. Hezbollah announced further attacks, including rocket strikes on a naval base near Haifa and a large rocket salvo targeting the northern Israeli town of Safed.
The ongoing conflict shows no signs of abating, with fears of a broader regional war prompting diplomatic efforts by Iran, which supports both Hezbollah and Hamas. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with a senior official from Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi movement in Oman, part of a broader diplomatic tour.
The Pentagon announced plans to deploy a high-altitude anti-missile system known as THAAD to Israel to bolster its defenses against potential Iranian attacks. Israel is still considering its response to an October 1 missile attack by Iran, the second such attack this year.
