Israel-Hezbollah Tensions Spiral in Week of Attacks: What to Know
The past week has seen a significant rise in tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia supported by Iran.Back-and-forth attacks have brought the two sides to the brink of their first full-scale war since 2006, when they fought a 34-day conflict that involved an Israeli ground invasion and killed over 1,000 Lebanese and 150 Israelis.Hezbollah and Israel have been trading cross-border missile and drone attacks since last October, forcing the evacuations of tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the frontier.
Hezbollah says it is fighting in support of Hamas in Gaza, while Israel says it is acting to secure its northern border.Here is a look at the events of the past week:Tuesday, Sept.17Hundreds of pagers suddenly and simultaneously blew up across Lebanon in an apparently coordinated attack that targeted members of Hezbollah.
At least 12 people were killed and more than 2,000 others injured, according to Lebanese health authorities.Many of those killed and wounded were Hezbollah members, but the stunning blasts also killed two children and wounded Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon.
Hezbollah and Lebanese officials blamed Israel, an assessment confirmed by U.S.and other officials.
Israel did not explicitly claim responsibility.WednesdayThe next day, walkie-talkies owned by Hezbollah members exploded, killing at least 20 people and wounding hundreds of others.Israel did not claim this attack, either, but experts said both operations required extensive planning and sophistication.
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, said that the “center of gravity” of Israel’s military effort, which had focused on defeating Hamas in Gaza, was “moving north.”ThursdayHassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, gave a speech from an undisclosed location in which he acknowledged that his group had “endured a severe and cruel blow” but promised to retaliate against Israel.As his speech was broadcast, sonic booms from Israeli fighter jets fly...