The Israeli army said Thursday it was striking Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, shortly after it had warned that the militant group could expand launches of projectiles across Israel.

The World Health Organization (WHO) called Thursday on Israel to cancel the evacuation order it issued for the southern suburbs of Lebanon's capital, Beirut, where there are two hospitals.

Israel's military warned residents of Beirut's southern suburbs, long a stronghold of Hezbollah, of imminent strikes and told them to evacuate.

Rocket alerts rang out across Israel early Friday, including in the commercial hub of Tel Aviv and in the southern coastal city of Ashdod following rocket fire from Lebanon.

Continued fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah is testing a fragile truce reached between the United States and Iran.

Israel's army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir visited ground troops in southern Lebanon on Thursday, telling them Hezbollah suffered a "heavy blow" from its major bombardment targeting the Iran-backed group a day earlier.

A Hezbollah lawmaker on Thursday reiterated his group's rejection of any direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered his cabinet to begin talks with Beirut.

The Israeli army said Thursday it was striking Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, shortly after it had warned that the group could expand launches of projectiles across Israel.

Lebanon's health ministry said Thursday that Israeli strikes across the country a day before killed more than 300 people and wounded at least 1,150.

Israel and Lebanon will hold talks next week in Washington after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered direct talks, a U.S. official said Thursday.

U.S. President Donald Trump told NBC News on Thursday he was "very optimistic" about a peace deal with Iran after their ceasefire, and that Israel was "scaling back" strikes in Lebanon.

Lebanon wants a ceasefire before starting any negotiations with Israel, a Lebanese government official told AFP on Thursday, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered his cabinet to begin direct talks with Beirut.