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Israeli air strikes killed two people and injured three others in southern Lebanon on Monday morning, as world leaders rushed to de-escalate tensions and avoid another potential all-out war in the Middle East following Saturday’s deadly rocket attack in the occupied Golan Heights.
Israel has blamed the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group for the rocket attack that killed 12 children and teenagers on a football pitch, making it the deadliest attack on Israel since the 7 October Hamas rampage last year.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would give a strong response to the weekend strike on the Druze town of Majdal Shams, which he visited earlier on Monday. “The state of Israel will not and cannot let this pass. Our response will come, and it will be harsh,” he said according to a statement from his office released following the visit.
Overnight strikes early on Monday and by Israeli jets on Sunday against what the military called Hezbollah targets “deep inside Lebanese territory” did not appear to constitute that response, but rather part of routine exchanges of fire with Hezbollah that have been going on since October.
Foreign minister Israel Katz over the weekend raised the prospect of a full-scale conflict, saying: “We are approaching the moment of an all-out war against Hezbollah and Lebanon.”
Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant announced on Sunday that Hezbollah would “bear a heavy price for their actions”.
Hezbollah has strongly denied responsibility for Saturday’s rocket attack on Majdal Shams.
While Israel’s Western allies condemned the attack, world leaders also urged the Netanyahu administration to show restraint and prevent a war breaking out in the region alongside the ongoing Gaza conflict.
British foreign secretary David Lammy condemned the strike and said the UK was “deeply concerned about the risk of further escalation and destabilisation”. “We have been clear Hezbollah must cease their attacks,” he said in a post on X.
The UK condemns the strike in Golan Heights that has tragically claimed at least 12 lives.
— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) July 28, 2024
We are deeply concerned about the risk of further escalation and destabilisation.
We have been clear Hizballah must cease their attacks.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken in Tokyo highlighted Israel’s “right to defend its citizens and our determination to make sure that they’re able to do that”. However, he added that US officials “also don’t want to see the conflict escalate”.
Chuck Schumer, the US Democrats’ Senate majority leader, claimed that “Iran, through its surrogates, Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, is really the real evil in this area”. But he told CBS that he did not think anyone wants a wider war.
“I hope there are moves to de-escalate,” he said.
Iran’s foreign ministry has warned Israel against new military "adventures" in Lebanon, which could lead to "unforeseen consequences and reactions to such stupid behaviour".
“Any ignorant action of the Zionist regime can lead to the broadening of the scope of instability, insecurity and war in the region,” a spokesperson for the foreign ministry said.
France called for “everything to be done to avoid a new military escalation” as Egypt warned the attack could spill “into a comprehensive regional war”.
The Lebanese government has condemned “all acts of violence and attacks against all civilians” and called for “an immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts”. It said “targeting civilians is a flagrant violation of international law and contradicts the principles of humanity”
Two security sources told Reuters that Hezbollah was on high alert and had cleared some key sites in both Lebanon's south and the eastern Bekaa Valley in case of an Israeli attack.
Lebanon has reportedly approached the US, Israel’s biggest backer both in terms of financial and military aid, to urge restraint. In return, the US asked the Lebanese government to pass on a message to Hezbollah to show restraint as well.
“The Middle East is on the brink; the world and the region cannot afford another open conflict,” cautioned Tor Wennesland, the UN special co-ordinator for the Middle East peace process.
Israeli strikes have killed some 350 Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon and more than 100 civilians, including medics, children and journalists, according to Reuters.
