Beirut (GNP) : Israeli military said it had deployed troops to several locations in southern Lebanon in what it described as a “forward defense” measure along the border, as cross-border hostilities with Hezbollah intensified.
“We have positioned soldiers on the border area in additional points to defend our civilians, to prevent Hezbollah from attacking them,” Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters. He stressed that the move did not constitute a ground operation but was instead a tactical step aimed at enhancing security along the frontier.
“This is not a ground operation. This is a tactical measure… to ensure the safety of our people,” he said.
Hezbollah, in multiple statements, said it had targeted three Israeli military bases in retaliation for strikes on its strongholds in Lebanon, including Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The group said it launched drone attacks on the Ramat David air base and the Meron base in northern Israel. It also claimed to have fired rockets at a military site in the occupied Golan Heights.
The exchange of fire marks a significant widening of the conflict, which has already drawn in regional actors amid the ongoing war between Israel, the United States and Iran.
In Tehran, a member of the Assembly of Experts said the process to select a new supreme leader following the reported killing of Ali Khamenei would be swift.
Ali Moalemi said members of the Assembly had pledged that “personal preferences” or factional considerations would not influence their choice.
“The Assembly of Experts will, as in the past, select a personality like the martyred Leader of the Revolution,” he said.
Moreover, Loud explosions were heard in northern Tehran on Tuesday, as the war entered its fourth day. It was not immediately clear what sites had been struck.
Iranian media also reported blasts in Karaj, west of the capital, and in the central city of Isfahan. Five members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps air force and navy were reportedly killed in US-Israeli strikes on the cities of Jam and Dir in Bushehr province.
Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Kuwait announced it would remain closed until further notice due to ongoing regional tensions. The decision came a day after smoke was seen rising from the mission following Iranian attacks on the country.
“Due to ongoing regional tensions, the US Embassy in Kuwait will be closed until further notice. We have cancelled all regular and emergency consular appointments,” the embassy said in a statement posted on X.
As fighting spreads across multiple fronts, diplomatic missions and military installations across the region remain on high alert amid fears of a broader regional conflagration.
