BEIRUT/JERUSALEM – Israeli troops on Tuesday crossed the borderline to operate in southern Lebanon as Israeli strikes against Lebanon’s Hezbollah group continue, Lebanese security sources and eyewitnesses said Tuesday.
They told Xinhua that an Israeli force consisting of a tank and three military bulldozers crossed the Blue Line separating Lebanon and Israel at around 8:00 am local time, advancing approximately 1 kilometer into Lebanese territory.
The sources added that “the force moved toward the town of Tal al-Nahas, located between the village of Adaisseh and the town of Burj al-Muluk in the eastern sector of the southern border region, before carrying out bulldozing operations in the area.”
They noted that “the Lebanese army is monitoring the movement of the Israeli force in coordination with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.”
Israeli forces are “operating in southern Lebanon” while continuing strikes against Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, according to an Israeli military statement Tuesday.
The military ground advance across the border and operations in southern Lebanon, along with troop deployments at several points near the border, are part of an “enhanced forward defense posture” to beef up security for local residents in the border area, according to the Israeli military.
On Monday evening, Israeli airstrikes hit the Jnah and Bir Hassan areas in Beirut’s southern suburbs, the first strikes near central Beirut since a ceasefire in November 2024, local broadcaster al-Jadeed reported.
Israeli strikes across Lebanon killed at least 52 people and wounded 154 on Monday, the government said, updating an earlier toll of 31 dead and 149 injured. The bombardment of southern and eastern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs displaced more than 28,500 people, the government’s disaster management unit reported.
Israel also killed Hussein Makled, the head of Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters, in an overnight strike, the Israeli military said on Monday.
Meklad was appointed in 2024 after his predecessor, Hussein Hazima, was assassinated during cross-border clashes between Israel and Hezbollah.
The military said that the intelligence headquarters is responsible for building the intelligence picture on Israel, adding that it “leads and directs Hezbollah’s intelligence activities against Israel and centralizes the organization’s strategic information gathering capabilities.”
Israel said it launched the offensive after Hezbollah fired rockets and drones towards its territory, citing retaliation for the .
Hezbollah lawmaker Mohammed Raad, who heads the group’s Loyalty to the Resistance bloc, criticized a government decision declaring all armed activity outside state control illegal. He said the move targets groups confronting Israeli attacks while failing to halt what he described as ongoing aggression.
Raad’s statement came hours after social media reports claimed he had been killed in Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, known as Dahieh. His remarks appeared to refute those claims.
He said Hezbollah’s response to Israeli escalation signaled rejection of “submission” and the idea that reconciliation with Israel is the only path to security.
Earlier Monday, Lebanon’s Cabinet declared all military and security activity outside state authority illegal, affirming that decisions on war and peace rest solely with state institutions. It ordered security agencies to prevent rocket or drone launches from Lebanese territory, called for restricting weapons north of the Litani River, which runs roughly parallel to the frontier, and urged intensified diplomatic efforts to stop Israeli attacks.
“The Lebanese state declares its absolute refusal of any military or security actions taking place on Lebanese soil outside the framework of its legitimate institutions and affirms that the decision of war and peace rests in the hands of the Lebanese state alone,” the Council of Ministers said in a statement issued after a Cabinet meeting, according to local television channel al-Jadeed.
The Cabinet said that Hezbollah’s armed activities violate state authority and ordered security agencies to prevent the launch of rockets or drones from Lebanese territory and apprehend violators.
The Cabinet reaffirmed Lebanon’s dissociation from regional conflicts and called for intensified diplomacy to secure a ceasefire and a clear Israeli commitment to halt attacks on Lebanese territory.
Also on Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Hezbollah will pay a “heavy price” for its recent rocket attacks, as the military confirmed it is considering a ground invasion of Lebanon.
In a post on the social media platform X, Katz declared Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Naim Qassem, a “marked target for elimination.” Katz claimed Qassem decided to join the current conflict under direct pressure from Teheran, following the start of a joint US-Israeli operation against Iran on Saturday.