BEIRUT: Israel struck Syria and Lebanon on Thursday, a war monitor said, and the United States used heavy bombers to hit targets in Yemen as the Middle East conflict intensified amid fears of all-out regional war.
Israel’s latest airstrike targeted the city of Latakia in Syria wounding two civilians, according to Syrian state media. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the attack was aimed at a Hezbollah weapons depot, though the Israeli military did not comment on the operation.
On October 1 Iran conducted a missile strike on Israel in revenge for the assassination of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh and a general of revolutionary guards.
Israel has vowed to retaliate for Iran’s missile attack. Meanwhile, Iran warned Israel against targeting Iranian infrastructure.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards chief on Thursday warned Tehran would hit Israel “painfully” if it attacks Iranian targets.
“If you make a mistake and attack our targets, whether in the region or in Iran, we will strike you again painfully,” Hossein Salami said.
Salami was speaking at the funeral of a Guards general who was killed in an Israeli strike on south Beirut last month that also killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.
In Lebanon, clashes between Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters have intensified along the border. Israel has conducted numerous strikes on Hezbollah strongholds. On Wednesday, an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon toppled buildings, killing the mayor of Nabatiyeh and 16 others in a strike on two municipal buildings.
Rescue efforts are ongoing in the city of Qana, where Hezbollah strongholds were bombed, resulting in the destruction of over 15 buildings, according to local officials.
Meanwhile, the United States used B-2 stealth bombers to target Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed that the airstrikes hit underground facilities storing weapons used by the Houthi movement to attack civilian and military vessels.
“This operation signifies a shift in US policy, indicating a firmer stance against the group’s destabilizing behavior,” said Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen and Middle East security analyst.
The conflict, which began after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, has spread across multiple fronts, drawing in Hezbollah in Lebanon and regional powers such as Iran.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has launched a relentless bombardment campaign in Gaza killing at least 42,438 Palestinians, mostly women and children, the territory’s health ministry said. In Lebanon, Israeli attacks have killed at least 1,373 people, though the true figure is believed to be higher.
International condemnation is mounting, with the United Nations expressing concern over the humanitarian crisis. UN officials have warned of a potential famine in Gaza, where food and water supplies have been severely restricted amid Israeli bombardment.
In northern Gaza, more than 200,000 people have been deprived of food aid for nearly two weeks, as reported by local civil defence officials.
