The strikes, part of an expanded military campaign since March 2 after Hezbollah joined the regional conflict alongside Iran, hit Beirut and areas in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese health ministry said a strike in Beirut’s Jnah district killed at least five people and wounded 52.

Additional attacks included a strike on an apartment building in Ain Saadeh east of Beirut, where three people were killed, including Lebanese Forces official Pierre Mouawad and his wife, according to the state-run National News Agency.

In the southern town of Kfar Hatta, seven people, including a four-year-old girl, were killed, the ministry said.Israel’s military did not immediately comment on the specific strikes. Chief of staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir visited troops in southern Lebanon on Sunday and said operations against Hezbollah would intensify.

Hezbollah said it had fired a cruise missile at an Israeli warship off the coast, but the Israeli military said it was not aware of such an attack.The escalation prompted the closure of the Masnaa crossing, Lebanon’s main land route to Syria. Israel had warned it would strike the crossing, alleging it was being used by Hezbollah to transfer military equipment.

Lebanese and Syrian officials said the crossing, a key civilian and trade artery, was evacuated and shut as a precaution.The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon warned that exchanges of fire near its positions could risk further escalation.Since the conflict expanded, Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed more than 1,400 people and displaced over one million, according to Lebanese authorities.

A strike in Jnah landed about 100 meters from Rafik Hariri University Hospital, causing damage and panic among patients. Hospital officials said they received dozens of casualties, while witnesses described explosions and falling debris in the area.Residents reported repeated strikes without warning.

Nancy Hassan, a local resident who previously lost her daughter in earlier fighting, said the campaigns had again hit her neighborhood.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called for negotiations to prevent further destruction, particularly in southern regions where Israeli ground forces have advanced.

The strikes, part of an intensified campaign since early March after Hezbollah joined the regional conflict alongside Iran, hit multiple regions including Beirut and southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese health ministry said an attack in Beirut’s Jnah neighborhood killed at least five people and wounded 52.Additional strikes included an apartment building in Ain Saadeh east of Beirut, where three people were killed, among them Lebanese Forces official Pierre Mouawad and his wife, according to the state-run National News Agency.

In the southern town of Kfar Hatta, seven people, including a four-year-old girl, were killed, the ministry said.The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the specific strikes or their intended targets.

Israeli military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir visited troops in southern Lebanon on Sunday and said operations against Hezbollah would intensify.Hezbollah said it had launched a cruise missile toward an Israeli warship off the coast, though the Israeli military said it was not aware of such an incident.

The escalation prompted the closure of the Masnaa border crossing, the main transit point between Lebanon and Syria. Israel’s military had warned it would strike the crossing, alleging Hezbollah was using it to transport military equipment.

Lebanese and Syrian officials said the crossing, a key trade and civilian route, was evacuated and temporarily shut.Clashes near United Nations positions raised concerns of broader escalation.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon warned that continued exchanges of fire in proximity to its forcea could trigger retaliatory responses.Since the start of the conflict, Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed more than 1,400 people, including 126 children, and displaced over one million population, according to Lebanese authorities.

The strike in Jnah landed close to Rafik Hariri University Hospital, causing structural damage and panic among patients, hospital officials said. Medical staff reported receiving dozens of casualties, while nearby residents described repeated explosions and falling debris.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun renewed calls for negotiations with Israel, urging efforts to prevent further destruction, particularly in the south where Israeli ground operations have expanded.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a press statement, “This morning I instructed the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) to continue with massive strikes against terrorists in the Gaza Strip and I also instructed that forces around the Gaza Strip be stepped up with tank, artillery and infantry forces.”

Earlier, Israel’s army has escaped the blame that an Israeli strike has killed a pregnant Palestinian mother and her baby, while calling the deaths as a result of Hamas’ miscalculated firing.

“The terror organizations’ propaganda at its finest,” Israeli army spokesman Ronen Manelis said on Twitter.

“The mother and girl they’re claiming in Gaza that were killed in an (Israeli) attack were killed by Hamas use of weapons,” he added, without giving any proofs.

Another Israeli military spokesman, Jonathan Conricus, told journalists later that based on intelligence “we are now confident” that the deaths were not due to an Israeli strike.

“Their unfortunate death was not a result of (Israeli) weaponry but a Hamas rocket that was fired and exploded not where it was supposed to,” he added.

However, Gazan Health Ministry said on Saturday that Falestine Abu Arar, 37, and her 14-month-old daughter were killed by an Israeli strike that hit their home.

Israel has responded with waves of air and tank strikes and says it is targeting only military-related sites.

Four other Palestinians have been reported killed, including at least two militants.

One Israeli civilian was killed in a rocket strike on the city of Ashkelon near the Gaza border.

The latest flare-up came with Hamas, the hardline movement that rules the blockaded Gaza Strip, seeking further concessions from Israel under the ceasefire.

Israel said around 250 rockets were fired from Gaza and its air defenses intercepted dozens of them.

One woman was seriously injured in a rocket strike on the Israeli city of Kiryat Gat, some 20 kilometers from the Gaza border, police said.

A house near Ashkelon was damaged, while other rockets hit open areas. The Israeli army said its tanks and planes hit some 120 militant targets in its response.

The Gaza health ministry reported a 22-year-old man, a 25-year-old man as well as a 14-month-old baby and her pregnant mother killed, with 17 others wounded.

A source in the group said Egypt was engaged in discussions to calm the situation, as it has done repeatedly in the past.

The European Union called for an immediate halt to rocket fire from Gaza.

Israel said it was closing its people and goods crossings with Gaza as well as the zone it allows for fishermen off the enclave until further notice due to the rocket fire.

“Over the coming hours we will continue and we will broaden our offensive efforts, air force efforts, inside the Gaza Strip, again focusing only on military targets,” Conricus said.

Four Palestinians, including two Hamas militants, were killed after two Israeli soldiers were wounded in a shooting during weekly protests on the border.

A cease-fire between Israel and Hamas brokered by Egypt and the United Nations had led to relative calm around Israel’s April 9 general election. But on Tuesday, Israel reduced the offshore fishing limit it imposes for vessels out of Gaza after a rocket was fired from the territory.

On Thursday, Israel said its aircraft struck a Hamas military compound after balloons carrying firebombs and explosives were launched across the border.

Palestinians in Gaza have frequently fitted balloons with firebombs in a bid to damage Israeli property and have in the past succeeded in setting fire to large areas of farmland.

A Hamas delegation led by its Gaza head Yahya Sinwar went to Cairo on Thursday for talks with Egyptian officials.

At least 271 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the protests began in March 2018, the majority along the border.

Two Israeli soldiers have been killed in that period.

Israel accuses Hamas of using the protests as cover to carry out attacks and says its actions are necessary to defend the border and stop infiltrations.

UN investigations have revealed that at the end of February Israel may have committed crimes against humanity in responding to the border protests, as snipers “intentionally” shot civilians including children, journalists and the disabled.

Based on Inputs from Arab News.