On Monday, Israel intensified its air campaign on Hezbollah, launching “extensive strikes” targeting the Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon. It is unclear how many of the casualties were civilians or Hezbollah militants, but many of the locations described by Israel as Hezbollah targets are also residential neighborhoods and villages. The nearly 500 killed on Monday alone is roughly half the number of Lebanese killed throughout the entire 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. Why is Israel attacking Lebanon? The US believes that neither Israel nor Hezbollah are interested in a full-scale war, but a major concern is that Iran, a key backer of Hezbollah, will get involved, US officials told CNN.

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