Israeli air force attacks targeted both Tehran and Beirut simultaneously Tuesday morning, escalating a conflict that began with the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iranian leadership and armed forces Saturday, according to reports from the Israeli military and Lebanese officials.
The Israeli air force described the strikes as “extensive” against the Iranian regime and Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group in Lebanon. Hezbollah had claimed responsibility for launching drones at northern Israel, a response to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister, Nawaf Salam, condemned Hezbollah’s actions as “irresponsible” and announced an immediate ban on the group’s military activities. The move comes as Hezbollah, with close financial and ideological ties to Iran, was widely expected to join the conflict following the initial attacks on Iran.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to “act forcefully” against Hezbollah, declaring its leader, Naim Qassem, a “marked target for elimination.” The Israeli military has as well approved a ground incursion into southern Lebanon, issuing new evacuation orders for dozens of locations.
The conflict has rapidly spread across the Middle East. At least 52 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon since Monday, according to Lebanon’s disaster management unit. At least 787 people have been killed across Iran since the conflict began, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed damage to the entrance buildings of Iran’s Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant.
Gulf Arab states have also been impacted. The United Arab Emirates has recorded 186 missiles and 812 drones directed toward the country since the start of the conflict, while two ports in Oman were targeted in drone strikes Tuesday. A drone strike hit the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, causing a fire.
The U.S. State Department has urged all U.S. Citizens to abandon more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries, including Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel and the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Yemen, citing “serious safety risks.”
Former U.S. President Donald Trump stated that the strikes have left a “leadership vacuum” in Iran, though details of that assessment remain unconfirmed.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the U.S. And Israeli governments have not issued a joint statement regarding the scope or objectives of the ongoing military operations.
