Israel warns 'all-out war' possible with Hezbollah
Israel's foreign minister warned Tuesday of "all-out war" with Hezbollah, after the Lebanese military and political group released what it said were videos of sensitive Israeli military sites and of civilian areas.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had threatened his country and that Israel is "very close to the moment of decision to change the rules against Hezbollah and Lebanon."
"In an all-out war, Hezbollah will be destroyed and Lebanon will be severely hit," he wrote on social media platform X. "The State of Israel will pay a price on the front and home fronts, but with a strong and united nation, and the full power of the [Israel Defense Forces], we will restore security to the residents of the north."
Hezbollah released Tuesday what it claimed to be aerial surveillance footage of military sites in the northern Israeli port city of Haifa, along with civilian neighborhoods and areas.
The footage, which The Hill has not independently verified, appeared to show missile storage areas and military warehouse units.
Analysts are warning that the daily fighting between Hezbollah and Israel is reaching a potential tipping point and could escalate to a full-fledged war. Israel wants to return some 80,000 displaced people who have been forced to flee their homes in the north at the border with Lebanon to escape the rocket fire, and some Israeli officials say an invasion into Lebanon may be the only way to achieve that aim.
Hezbollah has been firing rockets and artillery at Israel since Oct. 8, a day after Palestinian militant group Hamas invaded southern Israel and sparked a major war in Gaza. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are funded and supported by Iran.
Israel has been increasingly targeting Hezbollah officials deep in Lebanon, including a deadly strike earlier this month that killed one of the most senior commanders yet in the group, Taleb Abdullah.
Nasrallah mourned the loss of Abdullah Wednesday, and vowed that Hezbollah would take revenge against Israel.