By Middle East Correspondent
LONDON, (The Muslim News): At least 50 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon in the past 24 hours, bringing the total killed since March 2 to 1,318, the Lebanese Health Ministry said on Wednesday.
In a statement carried by the National News Agency, the ministry said 3,935 people have been wounded over the same period, including 185 injured in the latest strikes.
Israel has conducted sustained airstrikes and a ground offensive in southern Lebanon since a cross-border attack by Hezbollah on March 2, despite a ceasefire that took effect in November 2024.
Hezbollah said on Wednesday that it carried out 51 attacks using rockets, drones and artillery shells targeting Israeli settlements, bases, troop gatherings and military vehicles. The group said the strikes were “in defence of Lebanon and its people” amid ongoing Israeli attacks.
Rockets fired from Lebanon caused damage to buildings and vehicles in the northern Israeli settlement of Kiryat Shmona. Israeli media, including Channel 12, broadcast footage showing smoke rising from damaged structures, while Channel 14 reported direct hits on residential buildings.
Escalation across Iran
The Israeli military said it had completed planned strikes on industrial, military, and nuclear-related targets in Iran, claiming that nearly all designated “vital and strategic” sites had been disabled.
According to the Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth, a senior military official said the Israeli Air Force had concluded its operations against Iran’s military industries and nuclear facilities, asserting that the damage would significantly delay Tehran’s ability to restore ballistic missile and nuclear capabilities.
Israeli forces said more than 400 airstrikes were carried out over the past two days in Tehran using 650 munitions. The army said the strikes targeted infrastructure linked to Iran’s Defence Ministry, including weapons production facilities, missile development centres, and air defence systems.
Iranian state media reported that multiple locations in Isfahan province, including Kashan civilian Airport and the cities of Shahreza, Aran, Bidgol and Najafabad, were also targeted in joint US-Israeli attacks.
A senior Iranian foreign policy official, Kamal Kharrazi, head of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations and a former foreign minister, was seriously injured in a strike on his residence in Tehran. His wife was killed in the attack. Kharrazi had served as an adviser to the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and remained in his role under the new leadership.
Regional and US military involvement
Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), which is part of the Iraqi Armed Forces and reports directly to the prime minister, said two of its fighters were killed and four others wounded in a US-Israeli airstrike targeting the group’s 53rd Brigade in Tal Afar district, west of Nineveh province. The PMF said the attack would not deter it from continuing its operations.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it has struck more than 12,300 targets inside Iran since Feb. 28, including over 155 naval vessels, using a combination of air, naval and ground systems.
The Washington Post reported that the US military had developed a plan to invade Iran and seize Iran’s uranium at the request of President Donald Trump.
According to the report, the operation would involve “a massive deployment of special operations forces and equipment, including excavation tools and the construction of a makeshift runway” to remove the material.
It added that the mission could resemble “a temporary base rather than a covert raid,” requiring extensive logistics, including engineers, commandos and nuclear specialists.
Former officials cited in the report said the operation could take “weeks” to complete and would involve significant risks, including potential casualties.
Separately, officials quoted in related reporting said the plan would likely require US forces to operate inside Iran “for several days or longer.”
Iranian response and statements
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a letter addressed to the American people that Iran holds no hostility toward civilians in the US or other nations.
“The Iranian people harbor no enmity toward other nations, including the people of America, Europe, or neighboring countries,” he said, according to state-run Press TV.
He called for a reassessment of Iran’s position amid what he described as “competing narratives and deep geopolitical tensions,” adding that Iran has not pursued aggression or initiated war.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry accused the US and Israel of carrying out systematic attacks on civilian infrastructure, describing the actions as part of unlawful warfare.
Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said, “This is not an isolated act of cruelty — it is part of a systematic and brutal pattern of illegal warfare against Iran.”
He added, “More than 600 schools and educational centers have been deliberately targeted over the past 33 days,” citing the Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Minab and a sports hall and adjacent elementary school in Lamerd.
“The term ‘war crime’ falls far short of adequately describing these atrocities,” Baqaei said.
“Given the explicit rhetoric of hostility toward Iranians (as a nation) expressed by US/Israeli officials, these crimes amount to genocide,” he added.
Meanwhile, the UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) – RAF Regiment gunners – joined US-Israel illegal attack on Iran, “successfully downed multiple Iranian drones overnight” in the warzone area. In addition, UK Typhoons and F-35 jets, together with Wildcat helicopters, continued their missions across the region overnight.
[Photo: Iran national football team players hold photos of children killed by US-Israel attacks on Iran as well as damaged hospitals and historical buildings during the pre-match ceremony ahead of a friendly match against Costa Rica attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the Titanic Mardan Palace Sports Complex in Antalya, Turkiye, on March 31, 2026.
Photojournalist: Orhan Çiçek/AA]
