Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the IDF to further expand its operations in southern Lebanon as the conflict in the region continues to rage.
Mr Netanyahu made the order during a video statement from Israeli Northern Command, in which he cited continued rocket fire by Hezbollah as the reason for the renewed military action.
Although Israel said last week it was enlarging a "buffer zone" up to the Litani River, Mr Netanyahu was not clear about whether he was referring to that area or to the seizure of additional territory in the country.
"I have now instructed to further expand the existing security zone in order to finally thwart the threat of invasion and to push the anti-tank missile fire away from our border," Mr Netanyahu said.
Iran-backed Hezbollah, which operates in the country, began firing rockets into Israel after the United States and Israel launched air strikes on Iran on the last day of February.
At time of writing, more than 400 fighters from Hezbollah have been killed.
Israeli strikes and ground operations have killed more than 1,100 people in Lebanon, including children, women and medical personnel, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
The Israeli military has said four of its soldiers have been killed in fighting in southern Lebanon.
Benjamin Netanyahu issued the order during a video address from Israeli Northern Command
|X (BENJAMIN NETANYAHU)
Netanyahu said the decision aimed to strengthen Israel's security position along its northern frontier.
"We eliminated thousands of Hezbollah terrorists, and above all, we eliminated the immense threat of 150,000 missiles and rockets that were intended to destroy the cities of Israel," he said.
"However, Hezbollah still has a residual capability to launch rockets at us...we are determined to fundamentally change the situation in the north."
The military action comes just hours after the IDF launched a fresh wave of strikes across Tehran on targets belonging to the Iranian regime.
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More than 400 fighters from Hezbollah have been killed in Israeli strikes
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In a brief statement, the IDF said its forces are "currently striking Iranian terror regime targets across Tehran".
Attacks by the regime have caused chaos across the Middle East with Qatar reporting today it had been targeted by a "number of drones launched from Iran".
Qatar's Ministry of Defence confirmed all drones had been "successfully intercepted".
The US embassy in Doha has urged all American citizens in Qatar to "remain vigilant and be prepared to duck and cover in a secure location if the Qatari authorities issue an alert".
Elsewhere in the conflict, Iran has said its forces are "waiting" for an invasion of US ground troops so they can "rain fire upon them".
Thousands of American soldiers and Marines are currently arriving in the Middle East as preparations are being made for a potential major escalation in the conflict.
Defence chiefs are understood to be eyeing special forces raids alongside conventional infantry operations.
Rather than a full-scale invasion of the Iranian mainland, the Pentagon has mulled using these troops to capture Kharg Island, the Islamic Republic’s principal oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf.
The Islamic Republic’s speaker of parliment, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said in response to reports of the invasion: "The enemy openly sends a message of negotiation and dialogue and secretly plans a ground attack, unaware that our men are waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever.
"Our firing continues. Our missiles are in place. Our determination and faith have increased.
"We are aware of the weaknesses of the enemy, and we can clearly see the effects of terror in the enemy’s army."