Israel-Gaza-Lebanon live updates: Hezbollah backs cease-fire, Israel widens offensive

Hezbollah launched more than 100 projectiles into Israel on Tuesday morning as the Israel Defense Forces continued its intense air and ground campaign in Lebanon.

The latest exchanges of fire came one day after Israel marked the anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7 assault and as Israeli leaders planned their response to last week's Iranian ballistic missile attack.

Latest Developments

_{Oct 8, 8:04 AM}

WHO reports 77 health workers killed by Israel in Lebanon

Hanan Balkhi, the regional director of the World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office, said Tuesday that 77 health workers have been killed and 74 others wounded by Israeli attacks since the beginning of October.

Health infrastructure has been "severely damaged," the WHO wrote on X, with the organization verifying 36 attacks on health facilities so far in October.

_{Oct 8, 6:44 AM}

Hezbollah in 'good shape' despite Israel strikes, leader says

Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Naim Kassem said Tuesday that the Iran-backed group will not be cowed by Israel's ongoing air and ground campaign in Lebanon.

"The longer the war goes on, the deeper Israel will find itself in trouble," Kassem said in a video address delivered from an unknown location. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "can say that he wants war, but he cannot achieve his goals from it," he added.

More Israelis in the north of the country will be displaced as Hezbollah expands its operations, he said.

Hezbollah will continue cross-border attacks and "expanding the range of the missiles," the leader said.

"This war has not affected our will and will not affect our determination to confront," Kassem said. "Our resistance on the front is cohesive and the administration is cohesive."

MORE: A year into Israel’s war against Hamas, the crisis in the Middle East risks expansion. Here’s how we got there

"Our resources and capabilities remain in good shape," Kassem said, despite weeks of intense Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon. "Our command and control is solid. Look at how our operations have increased in the last few days." Still, Kassem also said Hezbollah supports Lebanese government efforts to secure a cease-fire.

Kassem said the U.S. bears responsibility for the ongoing war. "Israel and America and the West are trying to put more pressure on us to make us afraid," he continued.

"Without American support, the Israeli aggression would have stopped within a month," Kassem said.

-ABC News' Joe Simonetti and Somayeh Malekian

_{Oct 8, 8:08 AM}

Hezbollah fires rocket salvo at Israel as leader speaks

Hezbollah launched a barrage of rockets into northern Israel on Tuesday as the group's Deputy Secretary-General Naim Kassem issued a defiant address vowing to defeat Israel's operations in Lebanon.

The Israel Defense Forces said 135 projectiles were fired into Israeli territory, some of which were intercepted and some of which landed.

The launches prompted sirens in the city of Haifa and elsewhere in the north of the country.

In his video address, Kassem -- Hezbollah's acting leader -- said more Israelis will displaced in the north of the country as the militant group expands its rocket fire deeper into Israel.

Kassem said Hezbollah's capabilities are still intact despite weeks of heavy Israeli airstrikes. He added that the group has replaced all commanders killed by Israeli attacks.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller and Joe Simonetti

_{Oct 8, 3:54 AM}

Israel should attack Iran's nuclear program, ex-PM says

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett called for a major attack on Iran, saying in a video posted to social media on Tuesday: "The opportunity must not be missed."

Israeli leaders say they are preparing a response to Iran's Oct. 1 ballistic missile barrage.

"Attack the Iranian nuclear program and the regime centers now," urged Bennett, who was prime minister from 2021 to 2022 and remains an influential voice in national politics.

An August poll by Israel's Channel 12 news found 38% of respondents would support Bennett's return as prime minister, versus 33% who wanted Netanyahu to remain in the post. Both men polled better than opposition leaders Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

_{Oct 8, 3:22 AM}

4th Israeli division joins Lebanon incursion

The Israel Defense Forces announced that a fourth division joined its ground operation in southern Lebanon on Monday.

The 146th Division "began limited, localized, targeted operational activities against Hezbollah terror targets and infrastructure in southwestern Lebanon," the IDF said. The 146th was previously deployed along Israel's northwestern border with Lebanon in a defensive role, it said.

The IDF said the 146th Division is the first reserve division to be deployed into southern Lebanon. Its troops will be supported by the 213th Artillery Brigade and other units, the IDF said.

The 146th joins the 91st Galilee Division, 98th Paratroopers Division and 36th Division which are already in action in southern Lebanon.

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

_{Oct 7, 6:34 PM}

IDF says they hit at least 120 targets in southern Lebanon

The Israel Defense Forces said they struck more than 120 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon on Monday within an hour.

The airstrikes followed evacuation orders earlier Monday.

Over the past 48 hours, 190 airstrikes were recorded throughout Lebanon, primally in the south, according to the Lebanese Security Council. Forty-seven people were killed and another 207 injured, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.

Approximately 190 projectiles were fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israeli territory on Monday, according to the IDF.

_{Oct 7, 6:29 PM}

Harris, Emhoff mark Oct. 7 by planting pomegranate tree at VP residence

Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff marked the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack by planting a pomegranate tree -- a symbol of hope and righteousness in Judaism -- at the vice president's residence.

Harris said the tree will "remind future vice presidents of the United States, their families and all who pass through these grounds, not only of the horror of Oct. 7, but the strength and the endurance of the Jewish people."

The vice president underscored her pledge to make sure Israel has what it needs to defend itself.

Harris also said the world must "work to relieve the immense suffering of innocent Palestinians in Gaza who have experienced so much pain and loss over the year."

Emhoff, the first Jewish spouse of a president or a vice president, also spoke about the "incredibly challenging day for Jews."

"We are still hurting, and today feels just as raw as it did one year ago," he said. "What happened on Oct. 7 is seared into our souls."

-ABC News' Molly Nagle

_{Oct 7, 6:07 PM}

Israel's incursions into Lebanon are limited: US State Department

Israeli incursions into Lebanon continue to be limited, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Monday, noting that this assessment does not "offer any kind of forecast about what's going to happen."

Miller asserted that U.S. officials were still engaged in talks about "what the path forward ought to look like" with a variety of partners in the Middle East.

"Just because we don't make the details of those conversations public, which we are not at this point, doesn't mean that we are not actively engaged in them," he said.

Similarly, he said Israel's campaign in Lebanon hadn't impacted the administration’s drive to secure a cease-fire in Gaza and characterized Hamas as the main hurdle that has been "unwilling to engage in a meaningful way with the mediators.”

-ABC News' Shannon K. Kingston

_{Oct 7, 4:52 PM}

State Department organizes another flight out of Lebanon

The State Department said Monday it organized a flight to carry Americans out of Lebanon on Monday.

The flight carried approximately 150 American citizens, legal permanent residents and their family members from Beirut to Istanbul, the State Department said.

The department said earlier Monday that it had also organized two flights over the weekend carrying a combined 235 passengers from Beirut to Istanbul.

Monday's flight brings the total number of U.S. charter flights from Lebanon over the past week to eight, with 900 combined passengers, according to the State Department.

The State Department said it has additionally blocked off 868 seats for Americans on commercial flights, with a significant share of them filled.

Officials from the U.S. Embassy in Beirut are now in contact with approximately 8,500 people inside Lebanon who have asked for more information about departing the country.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Monday that does not mean that all intend to leave, though the department has assessed that there is still significant demand for additional government charter flights among Americans in Lebanon.

-ABC News' Shannon K. Kingston

_{Oct 7, 12:51 PM}

IDF warns they will soon operate in maritime area off southern Lebanon

In a warning to vacationers, beachgoers and boaters, the Israel Defense Forces said they will soon operate against "Hezbollah maritime targets" south of the Awali River line.

"For your safety, refrain from being in the sea or on the beach from now until further notice. Being on the beach and boat movements in the area of ​​the Awali River line southward pose a danger to your life," the IDF said.

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