UN chief 'deeply concerned' after Hezbollah, Israel exchange intense cross-border fire

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "is "deeply concerned" by an overnight intense exchange of cross-border fire by Israel and Hezbollah, his spokesperson said Sunday.

"These actions put both the Lebanese and Israeli populations at risk, as well as threatening regional security and stability," Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. "The Secretary-General calls for immediate de-escalation and on the parties to urgently and immediately return to a cessation of hostilities and fully implement resolution 1701 (2006)."

Lebanese Hezbollah announced on Sunday that it had launched hundreds of rockets and drones deep into Israel overnight Saturday as part of the "first phase" of its response to Tel Aviv's assassination of senior commander Fouad Shukr late last month.

The announcement came shortly after the Israeli army attacked southern Lebanon with large-scale airstrikes, which it claimed were aimed at preventing Hezbollah from launching an attack.

Hezbollah called Israeli claims of carrying out "preemptive strikes" "empty" and inconsistent with the actual situation on the ground. Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is slated to deliver a speech later on Sunday to address the situation.

Since Oct. 8, 2023, Hezbollah has been engaged in daily exchanges of fire with the Israeli army across the Lebanese-Israeli border, resulting in hundreds of casualties, mostly on the Lebanese side.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of an intense Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 40,300 Palestinians since a Hamas attack last Oct. 7. The military campaign has reduced much of the territory to rubble and left most of the people homeless, hungry, and prone to disease.