ISRAEL is planning an imminent ground invasion of Lebanon as tanks and soldiers have massed on the border, a US official has said.
The attack is thought to be just hours away with the IDF barring civilians from going near one part of the frontier.
APAn Israeli mobile artillery unit fires a shell from northern Israel towards Lebanon tonight[/caption]
GettyIsraeli tanks and APC’s gather by the Israeli – Lebanese border today[/caption]
Dan CharityIsrael has moved tanks to the border over the past few days[/caption]
AFPHezbollah’s deputy chief Naim Qassem today said the terror group is ‘ready’ for war[/caption]
The febrile atmosphere comes as Lebanese troops have pulled back five kilometres inside their own country, Reuters reports.
Israel is seeking to wipe out terror group Hezbollah’s positions with the “imminent” invasion, a US official who spoke to Reuters said.
While CBS News reported that the invasion could happen “within hours”.
Parts of southern Lebanon are already said to have been shelled by tank and artillery fire, Haaretz reported.
One top Israeli politician who has been involved with wartime decision making posted a prayer on X for Israeli soldiers.
Aryeh Deri said: “The Holy One, blessed be He, will protect and save our soldiers from every trouble and distress and from every blight and disease and will send blessing and success in every work of their hands.”
UK Foreign Minister David Lammy spoke to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken tonight with both calling for an immediate ceasefire.
But his calls have fallen on deaf ears with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking to the region today delivering a chillingly warning that there’s “nowhere in the Middle East that Israel cannot reach”.
The country’s Defence Minister told troops: “We will use all the means that may be required – your forces, other forces, from the air, from the sea, and on land. Good luck.”
Israel told the US government its invasion is focused on destroying Hezbollah infrastructure on the Lebanese side of the border, the State Department said.
The spokesperson said: “They [Israel] have informed us about a number of operations.
“They have at this time, told us that those are limited operations focused on Hezbollah infrastructure near the border, but we’re in continuous conversations about it.”
The IDF’s special operations troops have already carried out raids in southern Lebanon ahead of the possible invasion.
The probing missions by special forces teams were ordered as thousands of Israeli reservists were drafted to join a new ground war across the northern frontier.
X/ @netanyahuNetanyahu has threatened Iran and its proxies as it is poised to invade Lebanon[/caption]
An Israeli official today told the Telegraph: “They [elite troops] are targeting key sites which have been built across the border zone.”
Hezbollah tunnels located along the border have been stormed as Israel seeks to hamstring the Iranian-proxy force.
One goal of a potential invasion is for Israel to remove Hezbollah’s positions that currently sit along the border, the Times of Israel have reported.
Hezbollah’s deputy chief Naim Qassem today insisted the terror group is ready for any Israeli ground offensive.
Qassem said: “We will not budge an inch from our position in supporting Gaza and Palestine and defending Lebanon and its people.
“We know that the battle is long and the options are open to us, and we are ready for the enemy to enter by land, as the resistance forces are ready for the ground encounter.”
After two weeks of intensive airstrikes and a string of assassinations of Hezbollah commanders, Israel has suggested ever more strongly that a land invasion is looming.
Israel has also today continued its ruthless drive to decapitate terror groups with more assassinations after the deaths of Hamas’ boss in Lebanon and Hezbollah’s chief.
Three key leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) have now been killed by a suspected precision drone strike on an apartment block in Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Moment Yemen oil tanks explode in huge fireball
Footage shows a gigantic fireball shoot into the sky after IDF jets hit the fuel while it was being stored at a port in Yemen yesterday.
The fireball dissipates into black smoke in the sky but a massive blaze continues to burn at the port and secondary strikes erupt.
Four have been reportedly killed and 33 injured, local media said.
The strikes extends Israel’s bombing campaign which has hammered Lebanon over the last two weeks killing thousands.
The IDF said fighter jets, refuel planes, and spy planes took part in the operation that hit the targets 1,800km from Israel.
Israel’s strikes are a retaliation against the militants after they launched rockets at Israel over the past few days.
One of those was targeted at Ben Gurion Airport as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned from New York.
That missile was shot down outside Israel’s borders, the IDF said, and Netanyahu’s plane had landed 35 minutes before sirens sounded.
ReutersIsraeli fighter jets have pounded locations used by Hezbollah, including civilian homes[/caption]