Israel Retaliates After Hezbollah Launches Midnight Attack From Lebanon

The Israeli military said on March 1 it launched retaliatory strikes against Hezbollah targets across Lebanon after the Iranian-backed armed group fired projectiles toward Israel in the middle of the night to avenge Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s killing a day earlier.

Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X, “Shortly after Hezbollah fired the rocket projectiles, we launched a preliminary and widespread wave of airstrikes in Beirut and also in southern Lebanon, where we targeted leaderships in the organization, headquarters, and terrorist infrastructure.”

At least 31 people were killed and 149 others were injured in the Israeli strike on Lebanon, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

In a post at 7:40 a.m. Tel Aviv time, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had begun a second round of strikes in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah.

“Among the targets under attack are weapons depots and other infrastructure of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in several areas in Lebanon,” the update read.

Ahead of the second round of attacks, Adraee urged Lebanese residents in more than 50 villages to evacuate their homes and move at least 1,000 meters away from those villages to open areas ahead of additional airstrikes against Hezbollah targets.

“Hezbollah activities are forcing the Israel Defense Forces to act against it with force, and we do not intend to harm you,” the military spokesperson warned Lebanese civilians on X just before 6 a.m. local time.

Adraee said that anyone staying near Hezbollah members, facilities, or combat assets could be targeted by Israeli strikes.

Iran’s Midnight Vengeance

Hezbollah fired its projectile toward Israel around 1 a.m. local time, triggering sirens across northern Israel, the IDF said on X. It is unclear whether there are any casualties from the attack.

Hezbollah claimed it struck the Israeli missile defense facility in Haifa.

“Hezbollah is operating on behalf of the Iranian regime, opening fire against the Israeli civilians, and bringing ruin to Lebanon,” the IDF said, saying it had prepared for the possibility of a Hezbollah response to U.S.–Israel military operations against Tehran on Feb. 28 and stood ready to defend Israel in “an all-fronts scenario.”

The Iranian-backed group said the repeated Israeli attacks against its members and leaders justify “the right to defend ourselves and respond at the appropriate time and place.”

In a statement, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun warned that any attacks launched from Lebanese soil would put the country at risk, although he refrained from naming Hezbollah for the attack.

“While we condemn the Israeli aggressions on Lebanese territory, we warn that persisting in using Lebanon once again as a platform for proxy wars in which we have no involvement will expose our country to risks once more, the responsibility for which falls on the parties that ignored the repeated calls to preserve security and stability in the country,” Aoun said on X.

Hezbollah’s attacks came as the United States and Israel continued their military operations against Iran, which U.S. President Donald Trump said were intended to eliminate threats from Iran and ensure the regime “can never have a nuclear weapon.”

Iran has retaliated with a series of attacks on Israel and its neighboring Gulf nations, targeting U.S. and Israeli military bases in the region.

Several Gulf nations, including Oman, which has acted as a mediator in U.S.–Iran nuclear talks, have condemned Iran’s retaliatory strikes on their territories.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera on March 1 that Iranian military units are now operating independently after becoming somewhat isolated, striking based on general instructions given in advance of the outbreak of the conflict.

“What happened in Oman was not our choice,” he said, referring to an Iranian drone strike on the Duqm port there on March 1. “We have already told our armed forces to be careful about the targets they choose.”

Troy Myers, Reuters, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.