Fears of a regional war in the Middle East spiked after Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets towards Israel. The rocket attacks came after Israeli strikes killed a senior Hezbollah commander and the killing of top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Hezbollah on Saturday said it launched dozens of rockets at Israel as tensions in the Middle East soared, with Iran and its allies readying their response to the killing of Hamas's political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this week. Amid fears of a regional war, US President Joe Biden hoped that Iran would "stand down" despite its threats to attack Israel.
Hezbollah, which like Hamas is backed by Iran, said its rocket attacks on Moshav Beit Hillel in Israel injured civilians. It also stated the attacks were in retaliation for Israel's strikes on Kfar Kela and Deir Siriane in Lebanon and after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a senior military commander from Hezbollah.
Three US and Israeli officials mentioned that they expected Iran to attack Israel as early as Monday, according to an Axios report.
Israel said its famed Dome system intercepted most rockets fired by Hezbollah. Israeli authorities confirmed several impacts near Beit Hillel, and local media reported fires in the area.
The US, Israel's ally, announced it was boosting its military presence in the Middle East to protect its personnel and defend Israel amid the soaring tensions. Washington stated it would deploy an aircraft carrier strike group led by the USS Abraham Lincoln, additional ballistic missile defense-capable cruisers and destroyers, and a new fighter squadron in the region.
Biden, at his beach home in Delaware, was asked about Iran's threat to attack Israel. When asked if Iran would stand down, he replied, "I hope so. I don't know."
The US Embassy in Beirut urged its people to immediately leave Lebanon on "any ticket available" amid fears of a fresh war in the region. The advisory followed UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy's warning that the regional situation "could deteriorate rapidly." Several countries, including Jordan, Canada, and India, issued similar advisories for their citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Iran, blaming Israel for Haniyeh's killing, said it expected Hezbollah to strike deeper inside Israel and that the group would no longer be confined to military targets.
Hezbollah and other Iran-backed groups from Yemen, Iraq, and Syria are already involved in the nearly 10-month-old war between Israel and the Palestinian outfit Hamas in Gaza.
In another related development, an Israeli drone strike in the southern Lebanon town of Bazourieh killed Ali Abd Ali, a prominent Hezbollah operative. According to the Israeli military, Ali was a "central terrorist" in Hezbollah's Southern Front.
Hezbollah confirmed Ali's killing in the strike and warned of retaliation against Israel. Lebanese media reported that two people were injured in the Israeli strike that killed Ali.
Violence also spread to the West Bank as Israel traded fire with Hezbollah on Saturday. Israeli strikes on a school compound in Gaza City, ruled by Hamas, killed 17 people.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to his French and British counterparts on Saturday about the situation in the Middle East, and all agreed on the need for all sides to exercise restraint, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.
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