Israeli airstrikes pummel eastern Lebanon overnight

Israel's military launched strikes Tuesday on eastern Lebanon, official Lebanese media reported, as Hezbollah fought Israeli soldiers after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed no mercy for the group.

Netanyahu's pledge on Monday came a day after a drone attack by Hezbollah on an Israeli base killed four soldiers, while volunteer rescuers said another 60 people were wounded.

"We will continue to mercilessly strike Hezbollah in all parts of Lebanon –- including Beirut," Netanyahu said on a visit to the base near Binyamina, south of Haifa.

Hezbollah said its "fighters clashed with" Israeli troops Tuesday who were trying to infiltrate on the outskirts of Rab Tlatin village.

The group also said it launched missiles at soldiers and a barrage of rockets at northern Israel, while the military reported sirens blaring near the border.

Israel's military, meanwhile, said its "troops eliminated dozens of terrorists in close-quarters combat" and strikes over the past day.

Since Israel last month escalated its bombing in Lebanon before sending ground troops across the frontier, the war has killed at least 1,315 people, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry figures, though the real toll is likely higher.

Israel launched multiple air strikes early Tuesday in the eastern Bekaa Valley, putting a hospital in Baalbek city out of service, Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) reported.

The International Committee of the Red Cross' regional director, Nicolas Von Arx, appealed Monday for the protection of ambulances and other health facilities and personnel, calling attacks on them "deeply worrying."

Israeli strikes have targeted Hezbollah strongholds as well as other parts of Lebanon, including a northern Christian-majority village where at least 21 people were killed Monday, according to the health ministry.

Anis Abla, civil defense chief in the southern border town of Marjayoun, said rescuers were "exhausted."

"Our rescue missions are becoming more and more difficult, because the strikes are never-ending and target us," said Abla.

- Peacekeepers vow to stay -

Israel says it wants to push back Hezbollah in order to secure its northern boundary and allow tens of thousands of people displaced by rocket fire since last year to return home safely.

In Kfar Kara, a village in northern Israel, restaurant manager Yousef was shaken by the deadly Hezbollah strike on a nearby military base.

"Now they know where that base is, what if next time they fire and are slightly off target?" he said, declining to give his full name for safety reasons.

Hezbollah said it had launched the "squadron of attack drones" in response to Israeli attacks, including one last week that Lebanon's health ministry said killed at least 22 people in central Beirut.

The group says its strikes are also in support of Palestinian militants Hamas who attacked Israel on October 7 last year, triggering the ongoing war with Israel in the Gaza Strip.

The war in Lebanon has displaced at least 690,000 people, according to verified figures last week from the International Organization for Migration.

Israel faced new criticism over injuries and damage sustained by the U.N. peacekeeping force which has been deployed in Lebanon since 1978, after a previous Israeli invasion.

The U.N. Security Council for the first time on Monday expressed "strong concerns" over peacekeepers being wounded.

UNIFIL has refused Netanyahu's request for peacekeepers to "get out of harm's way," with U.N. peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix saying the blue helmets will stay in their positions.

Jordan's King Abdullah II warned of "a regional war that will be costly for everyone," during a meeting with Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Monday.

Israel is still weighing its response to an October 1 missile attack by Iran, launched in retaliation for Israel's killing of Tehran-aligned militant leaders in the region, along with a general in Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

A counterattack would only target Iranian military sites, not nuclear or oil facilities, U.S. media reported Monday citing U.S. officials.