Spain has denounced the Israeli bombardment of Lebanon and called for a ceasefire in Gaza, after reports that more than 350 people have been killed.
Israel bombed Beirut and southern Lebanon on Monday, saying it was targeting a senior Hezbollah commander and the group’s weapons depots and rocket emplacements. The Shia militia responded by firing missiles at northern Israel.
“The Spanish government expresses its deep dismay and condemnation of the Israeli bombardment of southern and eastern Lebanon today, which has left hundreds dead, in response to Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel over the weekend,” the Foreign Ministry in Madrid said on Monday evening.
“The spiral of violence must stop,” the ministry added.
Spain called on all parties to “respect civilian lives and the basic principles of international humanitarian law” and fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, according to the unofficial translation provided by the ministry.
“War must be avoided at all costs,” the Spanish Foreign Ministry said. “An immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza is absolutely necessary to reduce regional tension.”
Months-long exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah escalated last week, when thousands of pagers and other communications devices used by the Lebanese group simultaneously exploded, killing at least 37 people and injuring an estimated 3,000, including children. On Friday, Israeli jets bombed Beirut and killed Ibrahim Aqil, a senior Hezbollah commander.
Hezbollah responded with a fusillade of missiles into northern Israel on Sunday and another on Monday afternoon, as Israeli jets struck Beirut and the Bekaa Valley. The Lebanese Health Ministry has reported over 350 fatalities and more than 1,200 injuries from Israeli strikes on Monday, Among the casualties were 42 women and 24 children, the authorities said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they had struck “more than 1,300” Hezbollah targets, in what Defense Minister Yoav Gallant described as “crushing what was built by Hezbollah for 20 years.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on the Lebanese civilians to “get out of harm’s way” and not let Hezbollah use them as “human shields.”
“Once our operation is finished, you can come back safely to your homes,” Netanyahu said in a video message in English.
Israel and Hezbollah had been trading low-intensity missile fire and airstrikes since last October, while the IDF focused its main effort on “eradicating” Hamas in Gaza. The Palestinian group’s October 7 raids are blamed for the deaths of some 1,200 Israelis. More than 41,000 Palestinians in the enclave have been killed in Israeli military operations since then.