Israeli jets carried out a wave of heavy strikes on southern Lebanon on Thursday as Israel’s military accused militant group Hizbollah of seeking to rebuild its capabilities in the area.
The strikes, part of a broader intensification of Israeli activity in recent weeks, have given further fuel to fears in Lebanon that Israel and Hizbollah could be heading towards a renewed escalation of hostilities.
The two sides finally agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire last November after a year of cross-border exchanges that began when Hizbollah began firing at Israel in the wake of Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel escalated into a two-month ground war.