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Lebanon’s Hezbollah on Thursday said it was launching a new phase in its war against Israel, claiming it has used precision-guided missiles against troops for the first time.
Israel has been targeting southern and eastern Lebanon, areas where Hezbollah holds significant influence, since the eruption of all-out war on September 23.
In Lebanese border villages, the two rivals have engaged in close-range combat following Israel’s ground invasion last month.
Hezbollah “announces a transition to a new and escalatory phase in the confrontation with the Israeli enemy, which will be reflected in the developments and events of the coming days,” the group stated.
The announcement followed the Israeli military’s report that its forces killed Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, a known ally of Hezbollah.
The statement emphasized that “hundreds of fighters…are fully prepared to counter any Israeli ground incursion into southern Lebanese villages,” noting an increase in attacks against Israel in recent days.
It highlighted that rocket strikes continue to “escalate day by day,” with “precision-guided ones…being deployed for the first time.”
Israel previously targeted Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah in a Beirut air strike on September 27, and has consistently called for Hezbollah to be pushed back from the border to ensure that residents can return to their homes in northern Israel.
Earlier on Thursday, Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah asserted that the Israeli army was not fully in control of any village in southern Lebanon.