Israel-Hezbollah conflict: All you need to know about the escalating cross-border tension Premium

Escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah threatens all-out war, with deadly attacks and mounting tensions.

The past week has seen a rapid escalation in the nearly yearlong conflict between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah. First came two days of exploding pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah — deadly attacks pinned on Israel that also maimed civilians across Lebanon.

Hezbollah's leader vowed to retaliate, and on Friday (September 20, 2024) the militant group launched a wave of rockets into northern Israel. Later in the day, the commander of Hezbollah's most elite unit was killed in a strike in Beirut that killed dozens more people.

The cross-border attacks ramped up early Sunday (September 22, 2024), with Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shiite group that is Lebanon's most powerful armed force, launching more than 100 rockets deeper into northern Israel, with some landing near the city of Haifa. Israel launched hundreds of strikes on Lebanon.

Then, on Monday (September 23, 2024), Israel launched a series of strikes that killed more than 490 Lebanese, the deadliest attack since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. Israel warned residents in southern and eastern Lebanon to leave their homes ahead of a spreading air campaign against Hezbollah.

Many fear the escalating violence could lead to an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah, which would further destabilise a region already shaken by the fighting in Gaza. Both sides have said they don't want that to happen, even as they have defiantly warned of heavier attacks.

Israel and Hezbollah have launched repeated strikes against each other since the Gaza war began, but both sides have pulled back when the spiral of reprisals appeared on the verge of getting out of control, under heavy pressure from the U.S. and its allies.

But in recent weeks, Israeli leaders have warned of a possible bigger military operation to stop attacks from Lebanon to allow hundreds of thousands of Israelis displaced by the fighting to return to homes near the border.