Heavy Israeli strikes hit southern Beirut as October 7 anniversary nears.(CNN NEWS)_
• Israel pounded southern Beirut with heavy airstrikes overnight, with the military saying it was targeting Hezbollah. A CNN correspondent said they were some of the most intense since the current conflict erupted between Israel and the militant group.
• As the anniversary of the October 7 attacks nears, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country faces war on seven fronts, including with Hezbollah and its backer, Iran. The region is still bracing for Israel’s response to last Tuesday’s Iranian missile barrage.
• In Gaza, Israel said it has encircled a refugee camp in the north after seeing signs of Hamas regrouping. Separately, strikes on a central Gaza mosque killed at least 25 people, according to hospital officials. The Israeli military said Hamas was embedded in the compound.
• The latest Israeli operations have forced hundreds of Palestinians to flee once again in the devastated Gaza Strip. In Lebanon, where the government says more than 1,400 people have been killed and over 1 million displaced, the school year has been delayed as a protective measure.
Israeli military issues new evacuation warnings for southern Lebanon villages.
The Israeli military has called for the evacuation of residents from an additional 19 villages in southern Lebanon, located within 30 kilometers (18 miles) of the border with Israel.
The military told residents to move about 50 kilometers (31 miles) further into the country.
“You must immediately move to the north of the Awali River. Save your lives and evacuate your homes immediately,” Avichay Adraee, the Israel Defense Forces’ Arabic spokesperson, said on X on Sunday.
This announcement follows a series of Israeli evacuation warnings over the past week, which now affect a total of 124 villages.
The Awali River is north of the city of Sidon, and just south of Beirut. The total land mass south of the river to the Israeli border represents a quarter of Lebanese territory.
The IDF spokesperson also reiterated previous advice for residents to avoid traveling “using vehicles” further into southern Lebanon from north of the Litani River, which lies roughly 18 miles from the border.
Some background: In the past two weeks, evacuation warnings from Israel’s military have immediately preceded airstrikes in southern Lebanon — sometimes by a few minutes.
Israel is carrying out an unprecedented bombing campaign on the country as part of its war against Hezbollah. The bombardment has at times targeted densely populated areas, where Israel says the militant group has intentionally embedded itself in the civilian population, destroying homes and forcing residents to flee.
More than 1,400 people have been killed and over 1 million displaced by the Israeli campaign, according to the Lebanese government.