How Israel's war spread beyond Gaza
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Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel sparked immediate fears of regional war. A year later, those fears are close to fruition.
The big picture: Israel is fighting on two fronts, against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, while engaging in an escalating tit-for-tat with Iran, a key patron of both militant groups.
Driving the news: While the war in Gaza is ongoing, the heaviest fighting has recently shifted to southern Lebanon.
- More than 1,000 people have died in Lebanon since Israel began an intense bombing campaign on Oct. 1, followed by a ground invasion.
- Israel says its goal is to clear out Hezbollah infrastructure to allow civilians who fled northern Israel after Oct. 8, 2023 — when Israel and Hezbollah began exchanging cross-border strikes — to safely return home.
Flashback: While Israeli officials say their military operations will be limited in scope, past Israeli invasions of Lebanon in 1982 and 2006 escalated into much wider wars that devastated the country.
Meanwhile, Israel says it's planning a "significant retaliation" for Iran's recent 180-missile attack, which could include strikes on oil infrastructure and other strategic targets.
- Iran said it launched the massive attack last week in response to Israel's assassinations of Hamas' leader in Tehran and Hezbollah's leader in Beirut, alongside a senior Iranian general.
- Iran said it hopes to avoid war with Israel, and that its retaliation is over unless Israel responds with force.
- But Israel is expected to hit back hard, and could even target Iran's nuclear sites if the escalation continues, Axios' Barak Ravid reports.
What we're watching: Fighting has also flared up elsewhere in the region.
- Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen have snarled international shipping with attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, including one last week.
- U.S. forces have come under attack in both Iraq and Syria from Iran-backed rebels. Israel has conducted strikes inside Syria, including one in Damascus on Wednesday.
Go deeper: Biden opposes Israeli strike against Iran nuclear program
