Israel is stepping up its offensive against Hezbollah as the region prepares for retaliation

Israel stepped up its offensive against the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah on Wednesday, even as the region prepared to respond to a rocket attack by Tehran that heightened fears of an all-out war.

The Israeli Defense Forces bombed Hezbollah’s strongholds in southern Beirut, while elite commando units encountered fierce resistance from the group’s fighters as they broke through the Lebanese border.

Eight Israeli soldiers were killed and several injured, the Israeli military said, as the IDF’s “targeted” attacks on Lebanese territory entered a second day.

Hezbollah said it attacked Israeli troops in at least three different locations along the border, killing and wounding several.

Israeli strikes rocked areas in central and southern Beirut on Wednesday evening, killing five people and wounding at least one other, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. In the past 24 hours, 46 people were killed and 85 injured.

The escalating fighting came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced retaliatory measures against Tehran after dozens of rockets were fired at Israel.

“Iran has made a big mistake – and it will pay for it,” he said on Tuesday. “Whoever attacks us, we will attack him.”

Iran’s surprise rocket attack, said to be in response to Israel’s assassination of senior Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, has brought the region even closer to full-scale conflict as Israel escalates its offensive against Tehran’s proxies.

In the past two weeks, Israel has assassinated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, launched waves of attacks against the group in Lebanon, bombed a Houthi rebel-controlled port in Yemen and been blamed for explosions in Syria.

Israeli forces continued their ground offensive against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon on Tuesday.

According to Syrian state media, their air forces also attacked Damascus on Wednesday afternoon, killing three civilians.

Hezbollah said on Wednesday its fighters repelled a group of Israeli troops that “attempted to enter the southern municipality of Odeisseh, near the border.”

Hours later, Hezbollah said it was involved in clashes with Israeli troops about 20 km southwest of Odeisseh and detonated an explosive device that killed and injured a group of Israeli troops near the village of Yaroun.

Acting Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati pleaded for both sides to agree to a ceasefire, saying 1.2 million people had been displaced by Israeli attacks on the militant group.

“Stop fighting. We don’t need more blood. We don’t need more destruction,” he said in an online briefing on Wednesday evening.

Only a handful of Iranian missiles penetrated Israel’s sophisticated air defenses on Tuesday, including one that appeared to land near the headquarters of Israel’s foreign intelligence service, Mossad.

One death was reported in the Palestinian city of Jericho, where a man was hit by debris from an intercepted missile.

A person briefed on the situation said Iran had attacked military and intelligence infrastructure near Tel Aviv and other facilities elsewhere in the country.

Iran said the attacks were in retaliation for Israel’s targeted killings across the region, including Nasrallah on Friday, and threatened a response if Israel retaliated.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on

Araghchi said he had spoken to his British, German and French counterparts and warned that while Iran was not looking for war, it was “not afraid of it.” He also called on “any third party” to refrain from intervening, a clear reference to the US.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appeared on Wednesday to blame the United States and European countries for the escalation in the region.

“The cause of all regional problems is the presence of the very parties that falsely advocate peace and stability in the region,” he said, without referring to the Iranian missile attack on Israel.

Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif said on Wednesday that the conflict with Israel would be fought “in rounds.” “If you beat us in this round, it’s only the first,” he said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned Iran’s missile attack on Israel on Wednesday, saying Tehran risked “setting the entire region on fire.” “We have to prevent this at all costs,” he said. “Hezbollah and Iran must immediately stop their attacks on Israel.”

The extent of Israel’s ground assault on Lebanon remained unclear more than a day after the IDF announced it would conduct targeted raids just across the northern border.

The IDF said it was sending additional forces to join what it said were “limited, localized and targeted attacks” on Lebanese territory, including troops from the Golani Infantry Brigade and a separate armored brigade.

Israeli troops have been conducting covert raids in the region for nearly a year, since Hezbollah began firing into northern Israel a day after Hamas attacked on October 7.

In oil markets, international benchmark Brent crude rose 2.2 percent to $75.14 a barrel on Wednesday, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose 2.4 percent to $71.52 a barrel.

After the Iranian attack on Tuesday evening, prices rose by up to 5 percent.

Additional reporting by William Sandlund in Hong Kong, Bita Ghaffari in Tehran, Heba Saleh in Beirut, Felicia Schwartz in New York and Henry Foy in Brussels