Israel Pounds Area Near Beirut Amid Signs of a Widening Offensive

The Israeli military kept up its heavy bombardment of a once densely populated area adjoining Beirut on Friday after saying its ground troops were battling new targets in southern Lebanon, signaling a widening of the fighting that could further undercut cease-fire efforts.

The airstrikes on the Dahiya, the area south of the Lebanese capital where the militant group Hezbollah holds sway, were the latest in a string of bombardments this week. The Israeli military issued fresh evacuation warnings just after dawn on Friday, and the bombardment began soon afterward — leveling at least one high-rise residential building and sending thick plumes of smoke and debris through the streets. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

There were also signs that Israel’s ground invasion of southern Lebanon was broadening and that its troops were battling Hezbollah fighters deeper inside Lebanese territory.

The Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday that its commandos were conducting ground operations against “several new enemy targets” in Lebanon. A senior Lebanese security official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters, said on Thursday that Israeli ground forces were operating around the town of Chamaa, roughly three miles from the border.

Hezbollah also said overnight that it had attacked Israeli soldiers near Tayr Harfa, a town immediately south of Chamaa that it had described earlier as part of its “secondary line” of defense, and where clashes had not been previously reported.

A widening Israeli offensive would undermine U.S. diplomatic efforts to stem the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran. The Biden administration has renewed a push to contain the fighting after repeated rounds of shuttle diplomacy over the past year failed.