Israel strikes Lebanon after pager attacks – live updates

The IDF has launched a wave of airstrikes, in what Israeli officials call “a new phase” of the war

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) hammered southern Lebanon with airstrikes on Thursday afternoon, two days after thousands of Hezbollah pagers exploded in an apparent Israeli sabotage operation. Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has pronounced the attacks “a declaration of war.”

Thousands of pagers – a low-tech and supposedly secure method of communication used by Hezbollah members – simultaneously detonated across Lebanon on Tuesday, killing a dozen people and injuring 3,000 more. A second round of explosions took place on Wednesday, this time affecting handheld radios. As of Thursday, a total of 37 people have been killed, including at least two children, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

While Israel has not taken responsibility for the blasts, American, Israeli, and Lebanese sources have identified Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency as the culprit.

Immediately after the explosions, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced that “a new phase” of Israel’s almost year-long war was beginning, this one focused on Hezbollah rather than Hamas.