Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ensured on Wednesday that his country is ready to expand its operations against Lebanon if necessary, and warned that the current conflict with Lebanon-based Hezbollah “could also deteriorate into a state of war.” “This is not theoretical, it is real,” he told Israeli soldiers. Gallant further said that Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah’s threats “may drag Lebanon into paying extremely heavy prices,” adding that the militant group “can’t even imagine what might happen.” The day before, Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah’s retaliatory response to the assassination of the group’s senior commander, Fuad Shukr, committed by Israeli forces, has not yet started, adding that the militant organization intends to target new Israeli sites, “deeper into the country.”
Israel strikes Hamas, PIJ arms production facility
A weapons production facility allegedly owned by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad located within a designated humanitarian area in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza was demolished in an airstrike, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Wednesday. Earlier, the military informed it targeted Hamas’ rocket launchers, which they claimed were placed near aid warehouses in southern Gaza. The strikes come following an evacuation order in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip, showing how the Israeli army is targeting north, south, and central areas of Gaza, making it more and more difficult for civilians to find shelter. The latest Gaza death toll update revealed the number is getting closer to 40,000.