Israel anticipates Iranian missiles after launching raids into Lebanon

Israel said on Tuesday it was expecting a widespread attack from Iran with ballistic missiles after Israeli troops launched ground raids into Lebanon and its warplanes bombed from the skies. 

In a statement early on Tuesday, Hezbollah said it targeted the enemy’s soldiers with artillery at the Shtula settlement.

The Hezbollah attack was carried out in line with supporting the Palestinian nation in Gaza and defending the Lebanese people, the statement said.

During the operation, the resistance fighters directly and definitely targeted the enemy’s forces, it added.

The rapid escalation that has engulfed Lebanon into war has killed hundreds. Near the city of Sidon along the Mediterranean south of Beirut, mourners wept over coffins containing black-shrouded bodies of people killed in Israeli strikes. 

An Israeli security official said troops in southern Lebanon had begun limited raids into Lebanon overnight that only went a short distance over the border, adding that no direct clashes with Hezbollah fighters were reported. The military said similar such raids had in fact been taking place in recent months.

But in a clear sign that the war could expand further, the military said it was calling up four additional reserve brigades for operational missions on the northern border.

Israel killed its leader of more than 30 years, Hassan Nasrallah, on Saturday with a massive airstrike on Beirut that sowed panic, just days after the group was shocked when booby-trapped pagers and radios blew up across the country.

The killing of Nasrallah has boosted the popularity of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which suffered a year ago from his failure to prevent the Hamas attack that killed 1,200 Israelis, saw 250 hostages taken back to Gaza and precipitated war there that has killed more than 41,500 Palestinians.

Israel's military said its ground raids are aimed at Hezbollah strongholds along the border that threaten Israel, and it is not a war against the Lebanese people.

Military spokesman Hagari said Israeli commandos who infiltrated southern Lebanon in past weeks had found tunnels, weapons caches and other evidence that Hezbollah was planning an attack inside Israel.