Over 480 Killed In Lebanon's Deadliest Day Since 2006 After Israel Targets 300 Hezbollah Sites

Marjayoun: Israeli airstrikes on Monday killed more than 490 Lebanese in the deadliest attack since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war after launching a series of strikes targeting ammunition and logistics sites in southern and eastern Israel. The Israeli military gave an ultimatum to the residents in Beqaa to evacuate their homes and vacate the valley as it warned of more attacks against Hezbollah.

Fearing Israeli attacks targeting Hezbollah, thousands of residents fled southern Lebanon, causing major traffic jams on the highway from Sidon to Beirut in the largest exodus since the 2006 conflict. More than 700 people were injured in the strikes, a staggering one-day toll for a country still reeling from a deadly attack on communication devices last week.

Taking Israeli threat seriously, the Lebanese government ordered schools and universities to close on Tuesday across most parts of the country and began preparing shelters for people displaced from the south.

Israel Expands Airstrikes Across Lebanon

The Israeli military announced that it hit some 300 targets today (Monday), saying it was going after Hezbollah weapons sites. Some strikes hit in residential areas of towns in the south and the eastern Beqaa valley. One strike hit a wooded area as far away as Byblos in central Lebanon, more than 80 miles from the border north of Beirut.

The military said it was expanding the airstrikes to include areas of the valley along Lebanon’s eastern border with Syria. Hezbollah has long had an established presence in the valley, and it is where the group was founded in 1982 with the help of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

Israeli military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari repeated warnings urging residents to immediately evacuate areas where Hezbollah is storing weapons, including in the valley.

The IDF has said it struck approximately 800 terror targets belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organisation.

Since this morning (Monday), the IDF has conducted proactive and extensive aerial strikes against Hezbollah terrorist targets in Lebanon. Thus far, the IAF has carried out strikes based on precise intelligence on approximately 800 Hezbollah terror targets in southern Lebanon and in the area of Beqaa deep inside Lebanese territory. Among the targets struck were buildings where Hezbollah hid rockets, missiles, launchers, UAVs and additional terrorist infrastructure.

The IDF is striking to remove threats to Israeli civilians and degrade Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure and capabilities.

US sends additional troops to Israel

The US military is sending “a small number" of additional US troops to the Middle East, Pentagon Press Secretary General said.

“In light of the increased tensions in the Middle East, and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional US military personnel forward to augment our forces that are already in the region," he said. Wouldn't say how many or where they're going, he added.

Hezbollah Retaliates with Rocket Fire

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said in a statement that it fired dozens of rockets at an Israeli military post in Galilee. It also targeted for a second day the facilities of the Rafael defense firm, headquartered in Haifa.

As Israel carried out the attacks, Israeli authorities reported a series of air-raid sirens in northern Israel warning of incoming rocket fire from Lebanon.

Warnings and Psychological Warfare as Conflict Intensifies

The evacuation warnings were the first of their kind in nearly a year of steadily escalating conflict and came after a particularly heavy exchange of fire on Sunday. Hezbollah launched around 150 rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel in retaliation for strikes that killed a top commander and dozens of fighters.

There was no sign of an immediate exodus from the villages of southern Lebanon, and the warning left open the possibility that some residents could live in or near targeted structures without knowing that they are risk.

The increasing strikes and counterstrikes have raised fears of an all-out war, even as Israel is still battling Hamas in Gaza and trying to return scores of hostages taken in Hamas' October 7 attack. Hezbollah has vowed to continue its strikes in solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas, a fellow Iran-backed militant group. Israel says it is committed to returning calm to its northern border.

Associated Press journalists in southern Lebanon reported heavy airstrikes targeting many areas Monday morning, including some far from the border.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said the strikes hit a forested area in the central province of Byblos, about 130 kilometers (81 miles) north of the Israeli-Lebanese border, for the first time since the exchanges began in October. No injuries were reported there. Israel also bombed targets in the northeastern Baalbek and Hermel regions, where a shepherd was killed and two family members were wounded, according to the news agency. It said a total of 30 people were wounded in strikes.

Death Toll Rises as Hospitals Brace for More Casualties

The Lebanese Health Ministry put the death toll at 182. It asked hospitals in southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa valley to postpone surgeries that could be done later. The ministry said in a statement that its request aimed to keep hospitals ready to deal with people wounded by “Israel’s expanding aggression on Lebanon.”

An Israeli military official said Israel is focused on aerial operations and has no immediate plans for a ground operation. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity in keeping with regulations, said the strikes are aimed at curbing Hezbollah's ability to launch more strikes into Israel.

Lebanese media reported that residents received text messages urging them to move away from any building where Hezbollah stores arms until further notice.

“If you are in a building housing weapons for Hezbollah, move away from the village until further notice,” the Arabic message reads, according to Lebanese media.

Lebanon's information minister, Ziad Makary, said in a statement that his office in Beirut had received a recorded message telling people to leave the building.

“This comes in the framework of the psychological war implemented by the enemy,” Makary said, and urged people “not to give the matter more attention than it deserves.”

It was not immediately clear how many people would be affected by the Israeli orders. Communities on both sides of the border have largely emptied out because of the near-daily exchanges of fire.

Israel has accused Hezbollah of transforming entire communities in the south into militant bases, with hidden rocket launchers and other infrastructure. That could lead the Israeli military to wage an especially heavy bombing campaign, even if no ground forces move in.

No Immediate Ground Operation Planned, Focus on Air Campaign

The military said it had targeted more than 150 militant sites early Monday. Residents of different villages in southern Lebanon posted photos on social media of airstrikes and large plumes of smoke. The state-run National News Agency also reported airstrikes on different areas.

Here's the Full IDF Video Shows Airstrikes On 'Infrastructure of Hezbollah Built-Up' In Lebanon: 

Israel has vowed to push Hezbollah back from the border so its citizens can return to their homes, saying it prefers to do so diplomatically but is willing to use force. Hezbollah has said it will keep up its attacks until there is a cease-fire in Gaza, but that appears increasingly elusive as the war nears its anniversary.

Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Some 100 captives are still held in Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead, after most of the rest were released during a weeklong cease-fire in November.

Israel's offensive has killed over 41,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and fighters in its count. It says women and children make up a little over half of those killed. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

(With AP inputs)