On Thursday, Israel launched a fresh series of airstrikes targeting Lebanon, while drones briefly targeted Kuwait, escalating tensions that could potentially disrupt the cease-fire with Iran.
The Israeli Defense Forces confirmed they aimed missiles at Hezbollah rocket-launching locations in southern Beirut, which were allegedly intended for attacks against Israel.
Although Israel has agreed to negotiations with Lebanon, with a meeting anticipated in Washington next week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized that military actions would persist until Israel’s security is guaranteed.
“There is no cease-fire in Lebanon,” Netanyahu asserted, clarifying that the truce with Iran does not extend to Hezbollah.
“We continue to strike Hezbollah vigorously, and we will not cease until your security is restored,” Netanyahu assured Israelis in a video message. “Israel is stronger than ever, while Iran is at its weakest.”
Following the Lebanese airstrikes, warning sirens sounded in northern Israel, alerting residents to potential retaliatory attacks from Hezbollah.
Iran and Pakistan, which helped broker the cease-fire between Washington and Tehran, said that Hezbollah was included in the truce agreement, with Tehran warning that the continued attacks would be met with a strong response.
As the bombings in Lebanon resumed, Kuwait’s military said it was targeted by “hostile drones.”
The US ally said the unidentified UAVs entered the country’s airspace on Thursday and targeted “some vital facilities.”
Kuwait’s national guard reported damage to some buildings, but no injuries or casualties were recorded as a result of the attack.
The Gulf country, which had been constantly targeted by Iranian missiles and drones since the war began, had not been attacked in the first 24 hours after the cease-fire was secured.
The hostilities threaten to collapse the fragile, two-week cease-fire between the US and Iran, which are set to enter formal negotiations in Pakistan to secure a permanent peace deal.
President Trump, who backed the idea that Hezbollah is not included in the cease-fire deal, said he spoke to Netanyahu to ease Israel’s attacks in Lebanon.
âI spoke with Bibi and heâs going to low-key it,” Trump told NBC News on Thursday. “I just think we have to be sort of a little more low-key.”
