Hezbollah fighters fired more than 150 rockets at northern Israel today (Thursday), killing eight civilians, as Israel prepared to push further north into Lebanon.
In Jerusalem, officials said Defense Minister Amir Peretz has asked the army to prepare a second stage push toward the Litani River, 30 kilometers north of Israel. Israeli officials said they control a six-kilometer-wide area of southern Lebanon.
Speaking on Lebanese television, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah threatened to fire rockets at Tel Aviv if Israel attacks Beirut's center.
Nasrallah also said Hezbollah would stop firing rockets if Israel stops attacking Lebanese towns.
Earlier today, Israeli warplanes pounded suspected Hezbollah targets near central
Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. The Israeli army said three of its soldiers died in clashes today in southern Lebanon.
Lebanon's prime minister says the three-week conflict has killed more than 900 people in his country.
In a video statement to an Islamic conference in Malaysia, Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said about one-third of the casualties are children under 12 years of age.
At least 27 Israelis have been killed by Hezbollah rockets since fighting began more than three