Lebanon says Israeli air strikes kill nearly 500 in deadliest day in decades
Israel says it struck about 1,600 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon, fanning fears of all-out war
03:22
Israel and Hezbollah trade fire as UN chief warns of potential for ‘another Gaza’
Israel’s military said it launched air strikes against Hezbollah sites in Lebanon on Monday, which Lebanese authorities said had killed 492 people and sent tens of thousands fleeing for safety in the country’s deadliest day in decades.
After some of the heaviest cross-border exchanges of fire since hostilities flared in October, Israel warned people in Lebanon to evacuate areas where it said the armed movement was storing weapons.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a short video statement addressed to the Lebanese people.
“Israel’s war is not with you, it’s with Hezbollah. For too long Hezbollah has been using you as human shields,” he said.
Families from south Lebanon loaded cars, vans and trucks with belongings and people, sometimes multiple generations in one vehicle. As bombs rained down, children crammed onto parents’ laps and suitcases were tied to car roofs.