BEIRUT — The leader of Hezbollah vowed Thursday to keep up daily strikes on Israel despite this week’s deadly sabotage of its members’ communication devices, and said Israelis displaced from homes near the Lebanon border because of the fighting would not be able to return until the war in Gaza ends.
Hezbollah and Israel launched fresh attacks across the border as Hassan Nasrallah spoke for the first time since the mass bombing of devices in Lebanon and Syria that he described as a “severe blow” — and for which he promised to retaliate.
The two days of attacks targeting thousands of Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies were widely blamed on Israel, heightening fears that 11 months of near-daily exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel will escalate into all-out war.
Hezbollah members carry the coffin of a comrade who was killed when a handheld device exploded during a funeral procession Thursday in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
During Nasrallah’s speech, Hezbollah struck at least four times in northern Israel, and two Israeli soldiers were killed in a strike earlier in the day.
Israeli warplanes flew low over Beirut while Nasrallah spoke and broke the sound barrier, prompting people in houses and offices to quickly open windows to prevent them from shattering.
Israel also launched attacks in southern Lebanon on Thursday, saying it struck hundreds of rocket launchers and other Hezbollah infrastructure, though it was not immediately clear if there were any casualties.
The army ordered residents in parts of the Golan Heights and northern Israel to avoid public gatherings, minimize movements and stay close to shelters in anticipation of possible rocket fire.
In recent weeks, Israeli leaders stepped up warnings of a potential larger military operation against Hezbollah, saying they are determined to stop the group’s fire to allow tens of thousands of Israelis to return to homes near the border.
In a Thursday briefing, the Israeli defense minister said Hezbollah would “pay an increasing price” as Israel seeks to make conditions near its border with Lebanon safe enough for residents to return.
“The sequence of our military actions will continue,” he said.
This video grab shows a walkie-talkie that exploded inside a house Wednesday in Baalbek, east Lebanon.
The attack on electronic devices appeared to be the culmination of a monthslong operation by Israel to target as many Hezbollah members as possible all at once — but civilians were also hit.
At least 37 people were killed, including two children, and some 3,000 wounded in the explosions Tuesday and Wednesday.
Israel warned U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in a call Tuesday that a military operation was going to take place in Lebanon but gave no details, U.S. officials said Thursday.
The call was one of four between Austin and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant this week. The two spoke again later Tuesday, and the U.S. acknowledged being briefed following the first attack.
The officials said the U.S. did not get advance warning of the second wave of attacks. The officials stressed that the U.S. played no role in the attacks and said they were surprised by the specifics of the operations.
Nasrallah said the group is investigating how the bombings were carried out. “Yes, we were subjected to a huge and severe blow,” he said. “The enemy crossed all boundaries and red lines.”
Pointing to the number of devices, he accused Israel of intending to kill thousands of people at one time. “The enemy will face a severe and fair punishment from where they expect and don’t expect.”
He said Hezbollah will continue its barrages into northern Israel as long as the war in Gaza continues, vowing Israel will not be able to bring its people back to the border region.
Israelis take cover Thursday next to a shelter as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets in Nahariya, northern Israel.
“The only way is stop the aggression on the people of Gaza and the West Bank,” he said. “Neither strikes, nor assassinations nor an all-out war will achieve that.”
Earlier Thursday, Hezbollah said it targeted three Israeli military positions near the border, two of them with drones. Israeli hospitals reported eight people injured.
Hezbollah says its near daily fire is a show of support for Hamas. Israel’s 11-month-old war with Hamas in Gaza began after its militants led the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
Israel responded to Hezbollah’s attacks with strikes in southern Lebanon, and has struck senior figures from the group in the capital, Beirut. The exchanges killed hundreds in Lebanon and dozens in Israel and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents on each side of the border.
Israel and Hezbollah repeatedly pulled back from an all-out war under heavy pressure from the U.S., France and other countries.
But in their recent warnings, Israeli leaders said they are determined to change the status quo dramatically.
A boy cries Thursday during the funeral procession of two Hezbollah members in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Speaking to Israeli troops Wednesday, Gallant said, “We are at the start of a new phase in the war — it requires courage, determination and perseverance.” He made no mention of the exploding devices but praised the work of Israel’s army and security agencies.
Israel began moving more troops to its border with Lebanon on Wednesday as a precautionary measure, Israeli officials said. Israel’s army chief, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, said plans were drawn up for additional action against Hezbollah, though media reported the government had not yet decided whether to launch a major offensive in Lebanon.
Lebanon is still reeling from the deadly device attacks.
The Lebanese Army said it is locating and detonating suspicious pagers and communication devices, while the country’s civil aviation authorities banned pagers and walkie-talkies on all airplanes departing from Beirut’s international airport until further notice.
