The Israeli occupation bombed 100 sites in Lebanon in a second wave after Nasrallah's speech

Areas in southern Lebanon were subjected to dozens of Israeli raids in a second wave of airstrikes, preceded by others coinciding with a speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Israel's Army Radio said more than 100 rocket launchers were targeted in southern Lebanon in the second wave of airstrikes today.

The Israeli newspaper Maariv quoted sources as saying that a wave of attacks had taken place on 70 targets within 20 minutes in southern Lebanon.

In turn, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority confirmed that more than 50 Hezbollah sites were targeted throughout Lebanon during the second wave of strikes.

The Israeli Authority quoted an Israeli official as saying, "We are working to exploit the developments to push Hezbollah to give the green light for a diplomatic solution."

The Israeli army radio said that the air force is launching a wide wave of attacks in southern Lebanon for the second time today.

The most violent strikes since the beginning of the war

Reuters quoted three Lebanese security sources as saying that Israel carried out dozens of strikes today, Thursday, across southern Lebanon, describing them as some of the most violent strikes since the war began in October.

Al Jazeera's correspondent confirmed that more than 30 raids took place on areas in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon, noting that Israel bombed sites near the Litani River and Mahmoudiyah in southern Lebanon with about 30 missiles.

Al Jazeera's correspondent reported heavy air strikes in central Israel, as part of a second wave of raids targeting southern Lebanon.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese Ministry of Health announced that 4 people were injured in an Israeli airstrike that targeted the town of Al-Haniyeh in the Tyre district in the south of the country.

The ministry said in a statement that an Israeli air strike on the town of Al-Haniya resulted in 4 Lebanese and 3 Palestinians sustaining minor injuries, who were treated in the emergency department.

Coinciding with the new wave of strikes, the Israeli army announced maneuvers in training areas in northern Israel at the end of the week.

The Times of Israel reported that Israeli military officials will present the political leadership today with various plans for the northern front.

Fires in northern Israel

In contrast, Al Jazeera's correspondent said that Hezbollah carried out 17 operations against Israeli sites since this morning.

Maariv newspaper reported that large fires broke out in the Metula area in northern Israel as a result of shelling from southern Lebanon.

Channel 13 Israel also confirmed that one person was slightly injured in Metula, northern Israel, and that homes were damaged as a result of shelling from southern Lebanon.

Yedioth Ahronoth said that the settlement of Metula is entering the "Alta" scenario, where there is no electricity or communications due to the fall of heavy missiles.

First wave of strikes

This afternoon, Thursday, the Israeli army announced the bombing of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, coinciding with a speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

"The Hezbollah terrorist organization has turned southern Lebanon into a combat zone. For decades, Hezbollah has armed civilian homes, dug tunnels under them, and used civilians as human shields," the Israeli military added in a statement.

He said he was "currently striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, with the aim of degrading the party's terrorist capabilities and degrading its infrastructure."

He continued, "We are facing strong and violent days on the northern front. The IDF is working to bring security to northern Israel, in order to enable residents to return to their homes, as well as to achieve all the war's goals."

The Israeli army confirmed that Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi approved plans for the northern front.

"Israel is prepared for defensive and offensive military operations on the borders and everywhere," the Israeli government spokesman said.

In turn, the Wall Street Journal quoted Israeli officials as saying that Israel is likely to begin a military operation to remove Hezbollah from the border.

In contrast, Al Jazeera's correspondent said that air raid sirens sounded in the city of Nahariya and several towns in its vicinity in northern Israel, after suspicions of infiltration by suicide drones.

These developments coincided with a speech by Nasrallah in which he confirmed that the bombings that targeted Lebanon over the past two days were a declaration of war, and said that investigations were underway to determine the circumstances of what happened and to make decisions based on that.

During the speech, Israeli warplanes flew over Beirut and its southern suburbs at low altitude.

Hezbollah threatened Israel on Wednesday with "severe punishment" in response to an attack that caused the explosion of thousands of wireless pagers in Lebanon, which the party relies on for its communications, stressing that it will continue its daily operations to support the Gaza Strip in the face of the Israeli war.

Source: Al Jazeera