A Lebanese Minister has said on Wednesday that “we are already at war” with Israel and there could “easily” be some half a million citizens internally displaced due hundreds of air strikes.
The Lebanese Health Minister Dr Firass Abiad told Sky News that Israeli attacks has killed more than 700 civilians and thousands are wounded.
He warned that Israel is creating a “state of panic and terror” amongst the population and Tel Aviv is trying to cause a “mass exodus.”
The Israeli military has called up two additional reserve brigades who will be sent to the northern border with Lebanon and will conduct “operational missions.”
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The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said in a statement, “This will enable the continuation of combat against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation, the defence of the State of Israel, and create the conditions to enable the residents of northern Israel to return to their homes.”
Hezbollah has fired a surface-to-surface missile at Mossad intelligence agency close to Tel Aviv on Wednesday.
The White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told CNN this is “deeply concerning,” he added that this is “evidence again that Israel is facing a legitimate threat from a terrorist group backed by Iran.”
Speaking of the Israeli air strikes, the Lebanese Health Minister said, “In the shelters now, it’s been reported that we have almost 50,000, and we know that people in shelters probably are only a very small portion because most of the people who have fled go to homes.
“But based on these estimates, yes, I can see how, you know, the estimate is that we will reach easily that that number.”
