Amid fears of an expanding war in the Middle East following mass detentions of bombs surreptitiously planted in Hezbollah communication devices, Israel continued its assault of the Iran-backed militia overnight.

Israel has carried out major bombing in Lebanon as the IDF says it was targeting the militant group Hezbollah, who has fired back. The U.S. has warned both sides against an escalation of any kind as fears of a wider war in the Middle East grow.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant did say on Wednesday, however, that his country's war with Iran's so-called proxy groups in the region had entered a "new phase," announcing a shift to the north of Israel after 11 months of intense conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.