Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said he has ordered the military to widen the invasion of Lebanon, amid intensified attacks on the country by the Israeli army.
"In Lebanon, I have just ordered the military to further expand the existing security zone," Netanyahu said in a video statement.
"This is intended to definitively neutralise the threat of invasion (by Hezbollah militants) and to keep anti-tank missile fire away from the border," he claimed.
Netanyahu, during a visit to the northern command, claimed that Hezbollah still retained "residual capabilities" to fire rockets at Israel, but the group had been severely hit by Israeli forces.
"Iran is no longer the same Iran, Hezbollah is no longer the same Hezbollah, and Hamas is no longer the same Hamas," the Israeli PM claimed.
"These are no longer terrorist armies threatening our existence -- they are defeated enemies, fighting for their own survival," he further said, adding that "we are determined, we are fighting, and with God's help -- we are winning."
Israel intensified attacks on Lebanon in early March after the Iran-backed Hezbollah group launched rockets into Israeli territory following US-Israel attacks on Tehran and the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Israel's aerial and ground attacks across Lebanon have so far killed over 1, 238 people, including 124 children and wounded 3,500 others, according to the Health Ministry. This includes 10 rescue workers and three journalists killed on Saturday.
The attacks have also displaced over over 1.2 million people in Lebanon, raising concerns of a humanitarian crisis.
On Saturday, Israel killed three journalists and nine paramedics in separate attacks in southern Lebanon. According to Al Jazeera, the journalists --Fatima Ftouni, Mohammed, and Shuaib--were killed in precision attacks that targeted their clearly marked press vehicle.
Several countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany and France have called for a de-escalation and warned that Israel's ground offensive would have devastating humanitarian consequences and could lead to a protracted conflict.
"The humanitarian situation in Lebanon, including ongoing mass displacement, is already deeply alarming," the countries said in a joint statement issued on March 16.
However, Israel has vowed to push deeper into the Lebanese territory.
Iran's ambassador won't leave Lebanon despite expulsion
Iran's ambassador will not leave Lebanon despite being declared persona non grata and ordered to leave the country by Sunday, AFP reported, citing an Iranian diplomatic source.
"The ambassador will not leave Lebanon, in accordance with the wishes of the speaker of parliament Nabih Berri and of Hezbollah," the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Hezbollah has denounced the decision while Berri's Amal party joined Hezbollah ministers in boycotting a cabinet session this week in protest at the order to expel Mohammad Reza Sheibani.
The foreign ministry this week gave Tehran's envoy until Sunday to leave in the latest unprecedented step by Lebanese authorities since Israel's intensified attacks on the territory following rocket attacks by Hezbollah.
The ministry accused him of making statements "interfering in Lebanon's internal politics."
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called the expulsion "a courageous decision."
The Lebanese authorities have banned Hezbollah's military and security activities. It has also banned the presence and operations of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, whom Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accused of directing Hezbollah operations against Israel.
