Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said Thursday that the detonation of the electronic devices was a “severe blow” that crossed a “red line,” but insisted the group would grow stronger and continue its daily attacks on Israel.
Nasrallah said Hezbollah was investigating the attacks, which Israel blamed.
“Yes, we received a big and heavy blow,” Nasrullah said. “The enemy crossed all borders, all red lines,” he added.
As usual, Nasrallah spoke by video from a secret location. Hezbollah usually invites its followers to gather to watch Nasrallah’s speeches on giant screens, but there was no demonstration this time.
Nasrallah said that as long as the war in Gaza continues, Hezbollah will continue its attacks against Israel.
“The Lebanese front will not stop until the aggression in Gaza stops,” he said.
“The only way is to stop the aggression against the people of Gaza and the West Bank,” he said, “neither attacks, nor assassinations, nor open war will achieve that.”
He added that “the enemy will receive severe punishment where he expects it and where he does not expect it.”
During Nasrallah’s speech, Hezbollah launched at least four attacks on northern Israel, with an earlier attack killing two Israeli soldiers. Israeli jets flew low over Beirut, breaking the sound barrier, causing birds to fly away in panic and people to open windows in homes and offices to avoid breaking glass.
Israel also struck southern Lebanon on Thursday, saying it was targeting dozens of Hezbollah missile platforms and other facilities. It remains unclear whether there are any casualties.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday that Hezbollah “will pay a higher price” as Israel tries to create conditions along its border with Lebanon for people to return home.
“Our goal is to return residents of northern Israeli communities to their homes. As time goes on, Hezbollah will pay a higher price,” Gallant said. “Our series of military actions will continue.”
Hezbollah fired a new round of rockets at northern Israel on Thursday, keeping up the pace of clashes with the Israeli military amid heightened tensions following the explosion of hundreds of electronic devices in Lebanon that killed at least 37 people and wounded more than 3,000.
Hezbollah said Thursday morning it attacked military positions in northern Israel, two of them with drones. The Israeli military said the drones landed near neighborhoods. Israeli hospitals said they treated at least eight patients with light or moderate injuries. The military said Thursday morning it struck several militant targets in southern Lebanon last night.
The explosions appear to be the culmination of a month-long Israeli operation to target as many Hezbollah members as possible. Within two days, pagers and walkie-talkies used by the Lebanese militia exploded, injuring and even maiming some fighters as well as civilians connected to the group’s social services. At least two children were killed.
It was not immediately clear how the attack would fit with warnings by Israeli leaders in recent weeks that they might launch a major military operation against Hezbollah, Lebanon’s most powerful armed force. The Israeli government has called it a war aimed at ending the Iran-backed group’s cross-border insurgency so that tens of thousands of displaced Israelis could return to their homes near the border.
Speaking to Israeli soldiers on Wednesday, Yoav Gallant, Israel’s defense minister, said that “we are at the beginning of a new phase of the war. It requires courage, determination and perseverance.” He did not mention the explosive devices, but praised the work of the Israeli military and security agencies, saying that “the results are very impressive.”
Gallant said that after months of fighting with Hamas in Gaza, “the center of gravity is shifting north and diverting resources and forces.”
The rocket fire on Israel was a message from Hezbollah, which continues its daily fire, a show of support for Hamas in the face of Israel’s military campaign that began 11 months ago in Gaza in response to the Oct. 7 attack led by Palestinian fighters against Israel.
Israel responded to Hezbollah fire with strikes in southern Lebanon and targeted the group’s leaders in Beirut, the country’s capital. As a result of the violence, hundreds of people were killed in Lebanon, dozens of people in Israel and tens of thousands of residents were displaced on both sides of the border.
Israel and Hezbollah have repeatedly backed away from the brink of open war in the face of intense pressure from the United States, France and other countries.
In their recent warnings, however, Israeli leaders have said they intend to radically change the status quo.
According to Israeli officials, Israel sent more forces to its border with Lebanon on Wednesday as a precaution. Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, the army chief, said plans were being drawn up to act against Hezbollah, although media reports said the government had not yet decided whether it would launch a full-scale attack on Lebanon.
Meanwhile, Lebanon was still recovering from the unprecedented explosions on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The explosions roiled Lebanon, which was already reeling from fears of open war. Lebanon’s military said it had found and detonated suspicious signals and communication devices, while Lebanon’s civil aviation authorities banned signals and walkie-talkies from all aircraft from Beirut International Airport until further notice.
The attack is likely to seriously disrupt Hezbollah’s internal communications, which are trying to find secure ways to communicate with each other. The militia reported the deaths of five militants on Thursday, but did not specify whether they were killed on the front lines or in explosions.
The explosions occurred when signals or walkie-talkies were off in various areas of Beirut and eastern and southern Lebanon, in homes and cars, grocery stores and cafes, or on the streets, and even at the funerals of some of the victims, the first explosions, often in front of relatives and others.
Many suffered serious injuries to their legs, stomach or face, or had their hands amputated. Twelve people, including two children, were killed and some 2,800 injured as a result of Tuesday’s explosions. In the explosions the following day, 20 people were killed and more than 450 injured.
Health Minister Firas Abiad praised Lebanon’s hospitals, saying they were able to deal with the flood of wounded within hours. “It was an unusual attack. It was a war crime,” he said.
Mary Ellen O’Connell, a professor of law and international studies at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, said booby traps are banned under international law. “Weaponizing objects used by civilians is strictly prohibited,” she said.
