Israel, Hezbollah threaten escalation amid global pleas for restraint

Israel and Hezbollah threatened on Sunday to escalate their cross-border attacks despite a chorus of international calls for both sides to step back from the brink of all-out war as strikes continue in Lebanon.

Dozens of Israeli air strike hit Lebanon's south and east on Monday, official media and correspondents said, as the Israeli military told people in Lebanon to move away from Hezbollah targets.

Lebanon's official National News Agency said "enemy warplanes launched... more than 80 air strikes in half an hour", targeting areas in south Lebanon, at the same time as "intense raids in the Bekaa" Valley area in east Lebanon. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after intense rocket fire from Lebanon that Israel has dealt "a series of blows on Hezbollah that it could have never imagined".

A defiant Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem said the group was in a "new phase" in its battle against Israel.

Both spoke after attacks on northern Israel sent hundreds of thousands of people to bomb shelters and caused damage in the Haifa area.

"No country can tolerate attacks on its citizens," Netanyahu said nearly a year into the Gaza war sparked by Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on Israel that has also drawn in Iran-backed groups across the region, including Hezbollah.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said military actions "will continue until we reach a point where we may ensure the safe return of Israel's northern communities to their homes".

"This is our goal, this is our mission, and we will employ the means necessary to achieve it."

Army chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi in a video statement vowed to "hit anyone who threatens" Israelis.

Israel's key ally the United States said military escalation is not in...