Israel and Hezbollah said their troops were fighting at close range in southern Lebanon on Wednesday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weighed a military response to Iran for firing ballistic missiles at Israel in an attack that has further set the region on edge.

Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters had clashed with Israeli soldiers in at least one Lebanese town, Maroun al-Ras, roughly a kilometre from the evacuated Israeli town of Avivim, which the militia said it had targeted with rockets.

Israel said eight of its soldiers had been killed in the first day and a half of combat in Lebanon, a relatively high toll compared to the daily losses the military has taken in the war in Gaza. The Israeli military gave no details of how its soldiers had died, but had earlier said they were engaged in close quarters combat.

The escalating fighting in Lebanon came as West Asia remained anxious after Iran’s missile barrage against Israel on Tuesday. Though the roughly 180 missiles were mostly intercepted by Israel’s air defences with the help of the US and other allies, Mr. Netanyahu said that Iran, a long-time adversary, had “made a big mistake” and would “pay for it”.

On Wednesday, President Joe Biden said he would not support an attack by Israel on Iranian nuclear sites, telling reporters that he and other leaders of the Group of 7 nations supported Israel’s right to respond to Iran’s missile attack on Tuesday, but believed that the response must be proportional. He said the G7 leaders had agreed to impose additional sanctions on Iran.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps said on Tuesday’s hour-long assault was retribution for the recent assassinations of leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas, another of its proxies that is fighting Israel in Gaza. Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s top military officer, said the missiles had been aimed at three military bases and the headquarters of Israel’s Mossad intelligence service.

Video verified by The New York Times showed dozens of missiles exploding in different parts of Israel on Tuesday, including about a quarter-kilometre from the Mossad headquarters. Israel’s military said an air force base had sustained “a few hits”, but that essential infrastructure had been spared. Photos showed damage elsewhere, including to a school in southern Israel and buildings in Tel Aviv.

The barrage of Iranian missiles came a day after Israeli ground forces pushed into parts of southern Lebanon in an invasion the military said aimed to eliminate Hezbollah’s ability to attack Israel.

New York Times News Service