Lebanon experiences deadliest day of conflict since 2006: Over 270 dead in attacks

More than 270 Lebanese were killed in Israeli attacks on Monday in the worst barrage since the war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

The Israeli military had previously warned residents in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate their homes ahead of an intensified air strike on Hezbollah.

Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, and the main road out of the southern port city of Sidon was clogged with cars heading toward Beirut, the largest exodus since fighting began in 2006.

More than 1,000 other people were injured in the attacks – a horrifying death toll in a single day for a country still reeling from last week's deadly attack on communications equipment.

The government ordered schools and universities to close across much of the country starting Tuesday and began preparing shelters for people displaced from the south.

The Israeli military announced that it had attacked about 800 targets on Monday, including Hezbollah weapons sites.

Some attacks occurred in residential areas of cities in the south and the eastern Bekaa Valley.

One attack hit a forest area in the far-flung city of Byblos in central Lebanon, more than 130 kilometers from the border north of Beirut.

The military said it would expand airstrikes to areas of the valley along Lebanon's eastern border with Syria.

Hezbollah has long been firmly established in the valley and was founded there in 1982 with the help of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari reiterated the warnings and called on the population to immediately evacuate areas where Hezbollah stores weapons, including the valley.

The warnings left open the possibility that some residents might be living in or near the affected buildings without knowing they were at risk.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said in a statement that it had fired dozens of rockets toward Israel, including at a military post in the Galilee.

In addition, the facilities of the Haifa-based defense company Rafael were attacked for the second time in a row.

While Israel was carrying out the attacks, Israeli authorities reported a series of air raid sirens in northern Israel warning of rocket fire from Lebanon.

The evacuation warnings were the first of their kind in the escalating conflict that has lasted almost a year and came after a particularly heavy exchange of fire on Sunday.

Hezbollah fired around 150 rockets, missiles and drones at northern Israel in retaliation for attacks that killed a senior commander and dozens of fighters.

The increasing attacks and counterattacks have fuelled fears of a full-scale war, while Israel is still battling Hamas in the Gaza Strip and trying to release scores of hostages kidnapped in the October 7 Hamas attack.

Hezbollah has said it will continue its attacks in solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas, a militant group also backed by Iran.

Israel says it is determined to restore calm on its northern border.

Associated Press journalists in southern Lebanon reported heavy air strikes on Monday morning in numerous areas, including some far from the border.

Lebanon's state news agency said the attacks hit a forest area in the central province of Byblos, about 130 kilometers north of the Israeli-Lebanese border, for the first time since the shooting began in October.

Israel also bombed targets in the northeastern regions of Baalbek and Hermel, where a shepherd was killed and two family members injured, according to the news agency.

A total of 30 people were injured in the attacks, it was said.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health put the death toll at 274.

She called on hospitals in southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley to postpone operations that could be performed at a later date.

In a statement, the ministry said the aim of the request was to keep hospitals ready to treat people injured by “Israel's increasing aggression against Lebanon.”

An Israeli military official said Israel was focusing on air operations and had no immediate plans for a ground operation.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance with regulations, said the attacks were aimed at limiting Hezbollah's ability to launch further attacks on Israel.

Lebanese media reported that residents had received text messages asking them to stay away from all buildings where Hezbollah stores weapons until further notice.

“If you are in a building where Hezbollah weapons are stored, leave the village until further notice,” the Arab embassy said, according to Lebanese media.

Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makary said in a statement that his office in Beirut received a recorded message asking people to leave the building.

“This is part of the psychological war being waged by the enemy,” Makary said, urging people “not to give the matter more attention than it deserves.”

It was not immediately clear how many people would be affected by Israel's orders.

Due to the almost daily exchanges of fire, the communities on both sides of the border have largely emptied.

Israel accuses Hezbollah of turning entire communities in the south into militant bases with hidden rocket launchers and other infrastructure.

This could lead to the Israeli military launching a particularly heavy bombing campaign, even if no ground troops intervene.

The military said it attacked more than 150 militant sites early Monday.

Residents of several villages in southern Lebanon posted photos of air strikes and large clouds of smoke on social media.

The state news agency also reported air strikes on various areas.

An Israeli airstrike on a Beirut suburb on Friday killed a senior Hezbollah military commander and more than a dozen fighters, as well as dozens of civilians, including women and children.

Last week, thousands of communications devices, mainly used by Hezbollah members, exploded in different parts of Lebanon, killing 39 people and injuring nearly 3,000.

Lebanon blamed Israel for the attacks, but Israel did not confirm or deny responsibility.