‘Continuing to strike’: Lebanon death toll reaches 700 as Israel shuts down ceasefire talks

The death toll in Lebanon has soared as Israel continues its offensive in the country, with thousands now displaced as villages are bombed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected calls for a ceasefire after the death toll in Lebanon surpassed 700 amid escalating conflict in the Middle East.

Australia joined US and European officials earlier this week to put heavy pressure on Israel to accept a proposed 21-day halt to the conflict to prevent all-out war amid escalating tensions with the militant group Hezbollah.

However, Mr Netanyahu told reporters upon landing in New York to attend the annual UN General Assembly he was not considering a ceasefire despite reports. His arrival in New York also sparked mass protests across the city.

“We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force,” he said.

“We will not stop until we reach all our goals, chief among them the return of the residents of the north securely to their homes.”

A dog roams the street near a residential building damaged by an Israeli strike in Tyre, Lebanon. Picture: Getty

His comments come as Lebanon’s minister for foreign affairs Abdallah Bouhabib made a desperate plea to the UN assembly.

Mr Bouhabib said his country was enduring a crisis that would threaten the nation’s “very existence”.

“The crisis in Lebanon threatens the entire Middle East,” he said.

“We wish today to reiterate our call for a ceasefire on all fronts.”

A building is damaged after an Israeli strike in Tyre, Lebanon. Picture: Getty

Tensions have escalated between Hezbollah and Israel this week after a massive attack on the militant group which saw pagers used by the group detonated.

The pagers had reportedly been tampered with before they reached Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based.

The explosive material, in very small quantities, was implanted next to the battery in each pager, along with a switch that could be triggered remotely.

At 3.30pm in Lebanon, the pagers received a message that seemed to come from Hezbollah’s leaders. Instead, the message activated the explosives.

Eleven people were killed and more than 2800 have been injured. Among the wounded, about 400 are reported to be in a critical condition.

Mr Bouhabib spoke about the attack in his address.

“In recent days, we have borne witness to a detestable, repugnant example of the transformation of telecommunications devices, civilian devices were transformed into ticking time bombs that were deliberately and simultaneously blown up, thereby claiming the lives of dozens, including children, including women, resulting in thousands of people being wounded, hundreds of whom are in critical condition,” he said.

Smoke from an Israeli strike rises over Lebanon. Picture: Getty

This week, Israel have launched multiple missile attacks across Lebanon, displacing more than 400,000 people according to humanitarian organisation Save the Children.

This week, French President Emmanuel Macron held a joint news conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying that Lebanon must not become “a new Gaza”.

The French president said it would be “a mistake” for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refuse a ceasefire in Lebanon, and he would have to take “responsibility” for a regional escalation of violence.

An injured child poses for a picture at a school in Beirut housing. Picture: AFP

“The proposal that was made is a solid proposal,” Mr Macron said.

The strikes have already led to the death of the head of Hezbollah’s drone unit in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Hezbollah said in a statement that Mohammed Srur, born in 1973, was killed in an Israeli air strike on Thursday local time.

A man wounded during Israeli bombardment rests at a hospital in the southern Lebanese village of Saksaqiyeh. Picture: AFP

The Israeli military earlier said in a statement that its fighter jets had “targeted and eliminated” Srur, identifying him as “the commander of Hezbollah’s air unit”.

The Israeli military claims they have hit more than 200 Hezbollah targets in the last day alone.

There are now fears Israel will launch a ground invasion in the coming days to move Hezbollah away from the border.

Originally published as ‘Continuing to strike’: Lebanon death toll reaches 700 as Israel shuts down ceasefire talks