Israel-Lebanon latest: Israeli strikes hit Beirut as pressure increases on Netanyahu to approve ceasefire deal

Israeli troops have reached the Litani River area of southern Lebanon, according to the IDF.

In a statement released earlier today, Israeli forces said their 91st Division pursued Hezbollah sites and weapons hauls “in complicated, built-up and mountainous areas in southern Lebanon from which terrorist plots were taken towards the northern settlements.”

“In the area of ​​the Litani river, the battle team of the Alexandroni brigade, including the reserve forces of the 769th brigade, the Golani patrol and the Sheldag unit raided following intelligence indications of many terrorist infrastructures that were hidden along the route of the complex terrain,” the statement said.

Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, has approved the continuation of the military offensive on the northern front of the conflict as Israeli forces carry out a major bombardment of Beirut and southern Lebanon while facing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire.

Israel earlier said it was carrying out “large scale” airstrikes on Beirut in a major bombardment of the Lebanese capital, releasing footage of its airforce striking 20 targets it said were Hezbollah strongholds.

The IDF also released a lengthy statement in which it claimed to have “eliminated” a Hezbollah commander who had carried out attacks against Israel’s northern settlements.

Foreign Ministers from the G7 democracies have upped the pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in Lebanon, saying “now is the time to conclude a diplomatic settlement.”

In a draft statement at the end of a two-day meeting in Italy, the G7 ministers urged Israel to facilitate humanitarian aid delivery to Palestinians, and condemned increasing settler violence in the West Bank.

The ministers also condemned recent attack on the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon and expressed their support for the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, saying it plays a “vital role.”

Israel says it is carrying out “large scale” airstrikes on Beirut in a major bombardment of the Lebanese capital ahead of critical ceasefire talks.

The Israeli Defence Force has posted a statement on social media platform X accompanied by black-and-white, aerial footage of explosions across a large area of Beirut.

“20 terrorist targets in 120 seconds,” part of the statement said, adding that Hezbollah’s money management and storage facilities were attacked in the air raid.

The IDF also released a lengthy statement in which it claimed to have “eliminated” a Hezbollah commander who had carried out attacks against Israel’s northern settlements.

“In the last week and in a precise activity, the commando fighters identified a squad of armed terrorists with the help of observation devices. Directing fire from the air and from the ground, a number of terrorists were killed, including the commander of the sector in the area where the forces operate,” the statement said.

“The commander of the sector in Hezbollah led terrorists and shooting towards the settlements of the north, including the city of Matula.”

The IDF statement said anti-tank missiles and a rock launcher were found following the operation.

Massive explosions from Israeli warplanes set Beirut’s skies ablaze again on Tuesday, as the UN warned of an “unprecedented humanitarian crisis”.

But amid the escalating violence a glimmer of hope emerged: the potential end to a devastating conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, which has claimed thousands of lives since it erupted 14 months ago in the wake of the devastating Gaza war.

Israeli government sources told The Independent that Israel was poised to approve a US-France plan for a ceasefire with Hezbollah. Reports suggested Israel’s security cabinet was expected to convene as early as Tuesday evening to sign off on the proposal in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“It seems very positive,” one official told The Independent.

The pressure is mounting - the European Union’s top diplomat Joseph Borrell said on Tuesday that there were “no excuses” for Israel to refuse the ceasefire, adding that all its security concerns had been addressed and that Lebanon would “fall apart” if it was not pushed through.

But in northern Israel, news of the proposal sparked outrage among hardline local mayors whose populations have been evacuated further south. Concerns have also risen about resistance from far-right members of Netanyahu’s cabinet, who may also attempt to block the deal.

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Lebanon’s ministry of public health says seven people have been injured following Israeli strikes on the towns of Srifa and Bazourieh in the coastal area of Tyre, in the country’s south.

The update was made on X as Israel continues is bombardment of Beirut and dozens of targets in southern Lebanon.

Earlier, Lebanese foreign minister Abdallah Bou Habib expressed hope at a conference in Rome that a deal to end the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah could be sealed by Tuesday night.

He said the Lebanese army would be ready to have at least 5,000 troops deployed in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops withdraw, and that the United States could play a role in rebuilding infrastructure destroyed by Israeli strikes.

Israeli forces are not letting up on their attack on the Lebanese capital, issuing another evacuation alert for the southern Beirut area of Ghobeiry a short time ago.

IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on X that residents in buildings specified on an aerial map accompanying the warning should evacuate immediately.

“You are located near facilities and interests affiliated with Hezbollah, and the IDF will work against them forcefully in the near future for your safety and the safety of your family members,” Mr Adraee said.

A building has been demolished and a cemetery damaged in imagery that shows the destruction caused by Israeli airstrikes in Beirut.

The bombardments are the latest in a series of strikes as Israel and Hezbollah continue to exchange fire ahead of the discussion of a ceasefire in Israel’s national security cabinet later today.

Israeli fighter jets have bombed dozens of Hezbollah targets in Beirut and southern Lebanon, according to the IDF, as fighting intensifies in the lead-up to a ceasefire deal being struck between the sides later today.

In a series of statements posted on social media platform X, the Israeli Defence Force said it acted on intelligence to attack buildings used by Hezbollah’s coastal missile unit, military headquarters, and other infrastructure this morning.

“All of the targets that were attacked were deliberately placed by Hezbollah in the heart of the civilian population, another example of the terrorist organization Hezbollah’s cynical use of Lebanese citizens as a human shield,” the IDF said, adding it took steps to warn the civilian population ahead of the strikes.

Before the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians, including early intelligence gathering, accurate observation, and advance warnings for the evacuation of the population in the area.

The IDF said it also targeted weapons, anti-tank missile, and air-defence depots in the Bint Jabal area in the country’s south, and in the early morning attacked 30 sites in the south that included Hezbollah weapons caches and military headquarters.

“Additional weapons depots associated with the ‘Nasser’ unit, which is responsible for many terrorist attacks against the northern settlements and the IDF forces, were also attacked,” the IDF statement said of the unit operating on the conflict’s southern front.

Israel’s deputy foreign minister Sharren Haskel has slammed the recent arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a political decision that only serves the interests of Israel’s enemies.

In a broadcast speech, Ms Haskel said the warrant “deprived the most threatened country in the world” of its right to defend itself.

“Israel has been attak from six different fronts from a few countries that are surrounding it and are far away,” she said, adding the ICC has made itself a “vessel” at the disposal of extremist groups.

“From a political perspective, it actually encourages the axis of evil.”

She said the fact that both Hamas and Iran congratulated the issuing of the warrant, which also targeted Mr Netanyahu’s former defence minister Yoav Gallant, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.