INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Israeli warplanes carried out late on Thursday their most intense strikes on southern Lebanon in nearly a year of war, heightening the
conflict between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah amid calls for restraint.The White House said a diplomatic solution was
achievable and urgent, and Britain called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah
is &afraid and concerned about potential escalation,& White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told a briefing, Reuters reported.The
intense barrage followed attacks earlier in the week attributed by Lebanon and Hezbollah to Israel that blew up Hezbollah radios and pagers,
killing 37 people and wounding about 3,000 in Lebanon.In Thursday&s late operation, Israel&s military said its jets over two hours struck
hundreds of multiple-rocket-launcher barrels in southern Lebanon that were set to be fired immediately toward Israel.The bombardment
included more than 52 strikes across southern Lebanon after 9 p.m.(1800 GMT), Lebanon&s state news agency NNA said
Three Lebanese security sources said these were the heaviest aerial strikes since the conflict began in October.There were no immediate
reports of casualties.Israel&s military vowed to continue to attack Hezbollah and said its strikes throughout Thursday hit about 100 rocket
launchers plus other targets in southern Lebanon.In a TV address on Thursday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the device explosions
on Tuesday and Wednesday &crossed all red lines&.&The enemy went beyond all controls, laws and morals,& he said, adding the attacks &could
be considered war crimes or a declaration of war.&Israel has not directly commented on the pager and radio detonations, which security
sources say were probably carried out by its Mossad spy agency, which has a long history of carrying out sophisticated attacks on foreign
soil.The Lebanese mission to the U.N
said in a letter to the Security Council on Thursday that Israel was responsible for detonating the devices via electronic messages and
explosives implanted in them before they arrived in Lebanon, in line with theories that have circulated since the explosions.The 15-member
Security Council is due to meet on Friday over the blasts
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati called on the Security Council to take a firm stand to stop Israel&s &aggression& and &technological
war&.The post Israel unleashes heavy strikes on Lebanon as US, UK urge restraint first appeared on Ariana News.
