The strikes aim to "degrade Hezbollah’s terrorist capabilities and infrastructure," the IDF said in a statement.

BEIRUT/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israeli warplanes carried out late on Thursday their most intense strikes on southern Lebanon in nearly a year of war, heightening the conflict between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah amid calls for restraint.

Hezbollah has accused Israel of crossing “all red lines” with its deadly detonation of walkie-talkies and pagers, as Israeli forces launched a fresh wave of strikes across Lebanon. Sonic booms from low-flying Israeli jets shook the buildings in Beirut during a televised speech by the militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah in which he warned this week’s unprecedented action “could be called a declaration of war”.