Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered a full force fight against Hezbollah as his ministers warned there will be no ceasefire.
Netanyahu has not responded to last nights ceasefire call, despite the world pleading with Israel to take a step back from fighting with a 21-day truce, his office said.
In defiant response to the desperate ceasefire proposal put forward by 12 international allies, the presidents office said: The news about a ceasefire - not true. This is an American-French proposal, to which the prime minister did not even respond.
The news about the supposed directive to moderate the fighting in the north is also the opposite of the truth.
The prime minister instructed the IDF to continue the fighting with full force, and according to the plans presented to him.
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike near the village of Khiam, Lebanon, Sept 25
Emergency workers at the scene of an Israeli airstrike in Maisara, Lebanon on Wednesday
People inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli strike that hit the seaside town of Jiyeh
Also, the fighting in Gaza will continue until all the goals of the war are achieved.
Following the warning put forth by Netanyahus office, Israel Katz, the countrys foreign minister, joined the chorus, saying there will be no ceasefire in the north.
Israel will continue to fight against the terrorist organisation Hezbollah with all our might until victory and the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes, Katz said on a statement on X, formerly Twitter.
Adding to the message, Israels Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Hezbollah should be crushed and that only its surrender would make it possible for the evacuees to return.
The enemy must not be given time to recover from the heavy blows he received and to reorganize for the continuation of the war after 21 days, he said in a statement.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvirs far-right faction was due to hold an emergency meeting on Wednesday but members of the party have already come out against the proposal.
It comes after the UK joined the US, France and a host of allies in calling for an immediate temporary ceasefire in Lebanon, warning the escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah is intolerable and could plunge the Middle East into chaos.
In a joint statement, the 12-strong bloc called for a 21-day ceasefire to provide space for diplomacy towards the conclusion of a diplomatic settlement, as well as a ceasefire in Gaza.
The call was supported by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who said flatly: Hell is breaking loose.
But their hopes of salvaging a peaceful solution were seemingly dismissed by Israel, with IDF chief Herzi Halevi last night visiting soldiers close to the border to tell them they must prepare for a ground invasion of Lebanon.
Halevi declared: We are attacking all day, both to prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry [into Lebanon], but also to continue striking Hezbollah.
Yemeni university staff and students burn an Israeli flag during a protest staged against the Israeli aerial attacks on Lebanon, on September 25
Vehicles wait in traffic in the town of Damour, south of Beirut as people flee southern Lebanon
Major General Herzi Halevi (left) visits troops on the northern border on Wednesday
French President Emmanuel Macron (L) speaks with Prime Minister of Lebanon Najib Mikati on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 25, 2024
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (right) meets with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas ahead of a bilateral meeting at the United Nations in New York
Hezbollah today expanded its [range] of fire. Later today, it will receive a very strong response. Prepare yourselves, he said, before adding: your boots... will enter enemy territory.
Halevis bleak declaration came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hezbollah was being hit with blows it never imagined and vowed to ensure the thousands of Israelis evacuated from the northern border would soon be able to return to their homes and jobs.
Yesterdays appeal for a last-ditch ceasefire was signed by the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
The situation between Lebanon and Israel since October 8th, 2023 is intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation, it read.
This is in nobodys interest, neither of the people of Israel nor of the people of Lebanon. It is time to conclude a diplomatic settlement that enables civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes in safety.
Diplomacy however cannot succeed amid an escalation of this conflict.
The statement calls for the governments of Lebanon and Israel to endorse the temporary ceasefire immediately... and to give a real chance to a diplomatic settlement.
It continues: We are then prepared to fully support all diplomatic efforts to conclude an agreement between Lebanon and Israel within this period, building on efforts over the last months, that ends this crisis altogether.
Meanwhile, Iran - Hezbollahs chief backer - said late Wednesday that it would stand with the people of Lebanon with all means if required.
But Irans foreign minister Abbas Araghchi warned the Middle East faces a full-scale catastrophe if the clashes continue to gather pace and urged the United Nations Security Council to intervene to restore peace and security.
The Islamic Republics reformist president Masoud Pezeshkian, is currently in New York at the UN General Assembly, where he expressed a willingness to reengage with the West and revive the 2015 nuclear deal.
Pezeshkians presence in New York, where he is sure to be meeting with Western politicians on the sidelines of the assembly, is a move that analysts said suggested he may have been granted permission from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to try to avert a war in the Middle East.
This has not been taken kindly to by more hardline Hezbollah supporters and Lebanese MPs, who expect full military support from their powerful ally.
After Araghchi said on Monday Iran was willing to work with the West to discuss its nuclear programme, Lebanese MP Mark Daou declared: They negotiate over our corpses.
People stand by an impact crater next to a destroyed warehouse at the site of an Israeli air strike in Jiyeh along the highway linking Beirut to the southern city of Sidon on September 25
Smoke billows over southern Lebanon following an Israeli strike, as seen from Tyre
Foreign Minister of Iran Abbas Araghchi addresses members of the press before an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting called to address the rising tensions between Israel and Lebanon during the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, New York, USA, 25 September 2024
Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Herzi Halevi (right) meets with the Commanding Officer of the Northern Command, Major General Ori Gordin (left) in Israel, on September 20, 2024
US President Joe Biden and Frances President Emmanuel Macron met on Wednesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to discuss new ceasefire proposals, and are the two heads of state leading calls for restraint.
France pressed the UN security council to hold an emergency session on the matter soon and Macron said he would send his foreign minister to the former French administration by the end of the week.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also urged Israel and Hezbollah to step back, saying all-out war would be disastrous for the region and its people.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, who appears set on continuing to wage war, said via his spokesperson David Mencer that while we favour a diplomatic solution... we have tried... for eleven and a half months.
Yesterday our president described the US diplomat [involved in negotiations] as talented but with all his talent he hasnt been able to negotiate any sort of climbdown from Hezbollah, Mencer said.
Netanyahu delayed his departure for New York until Thursday, where he too is due to speak at the UN General Assembly.
Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed more than 600 people since Monday, including scores of women and children, according to the latest figures by the Lebanese health ministry.
The ministry said that at least 72 people were killed in strikes and 400 injured on Wednesday alone.
Netanyahu has promised total victory over Hamas and the return of all the hostages held in Gaza - goals that many believe are simply unachievable.
Whats more, many analysts and observers accuse Netanyahu of having a personal stake in forging on with the war.
His governing coalition relies on far-right ministers who want to permanently reoccupy the Palestinian enclave and destroy Hezbollahs ability to threaten Israel - and they have threatened to bring down the government if Netanyahu concedes too much.
That would force early elections that could drive him from power at a time when he is on trial for corruption - charges that he will not face while war rages on.
For many on both sides of the border, the violence of the past two weeks in Lebanon has sparked bitter memories of the 2006 war that killed 1,200 people in Lebanon, most of them civilians, and 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers.
According to the UN, the latest violence has sparked an exodus of around 90,000 people from their homes in traditional Hezbollah strongholds for safer areas elsewhere in the tiny Mediterranean country.
Rockets fired from southern Lebanon are intercepted by Israels Iron Dome air defence system over the Upper Galilee region in northern Israel on August 23, 2024
Israels Iron Dome anti-missile system engages as rockets are launched from Lebanon
Yesterdays desperate plea by members of the international community for a ceasefire was issued after Britains Prime Minister urged Britons to leave Lebanon immediately by the remaining commercial routes.
Sir Keir said: I have a very important message for British nationals in Lebanon which is: the time to leave is now.
The contingency plans are being ramped up but dont wait for those, there are still commercial flights. Its very important that they hear my message, which is to leave and to leave immediately.
Britains Ministry of Defence has already drawn up plans for a desperate evacuation of UK citizens from Lebanon, with a 700-strong force of Royal Marine commandos, sailors and combat engineers en-route to the region.
The MoDs rescue mission template, known in military circles as Operation Meteoric, could see commandos making beach landings in Lebanon with UK citizens escorted onto a flotilla of military vessels.
Such plans would also see warships and RAF jets already stationed in Cyprus tasked with facilitating the rescue mission, with thousands of Brits still stuck in the country.
Some have reported that their families have not received a response from the British consulate as flights out of Beirut are cancelled amid the ongoing Israeli airstrikes.
Britains Defence Secretary John Healey said on Tuedsay: Events in the past hours and days have demonstrated how volatile this situation is which is why our message is clear – British nationals should leave now.
We continue to urge all sides to step back from conflict to prevent further tragic loss of life.
Government is ensuring all preparations are in place to support British nationals should the situation deteriorate.