Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited troops stationed near the border with Lebanon and warned Hezbollah against entering a war with Israel, otherwise it will "make the mistake of its life".
The Shia Islamist militant group would be crippled by a force "it cannot even imagine" and the consequences would be "devastating", Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday.
The Israeli army and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants have traded fire during the Hamas-Israel war.
Speaking to troops in the north on Sunday, Mr Netanyahu said Israel would react more fiercely than it did during its short 2006 war with Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon.
"If Hezbollah decides to enter the war, it will miss the Second Lebanon War. It will make the mistake of its life. We will cripple it with a force it cannot even imagine and the consequences for it and the Lebanese state are devastating," the Israeli leader said.
