Israel-Hezbollah War: Israel tells soldiers to prepare for possible ground invasion in Lebanon

Israel's army chief has asked the tank brigade to prepare the ground for Israel's possible invasion in Lebanon.

Iran-back Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in a deadly conflict after the war in Gaza erupted. The attack from across the border intensified after the pager and walkie-talkie attack rocked Lebanon on September 17-18 targeting Hezbollah members.

In the past couple of days, Israel has bombed and attacked nearly, 2,000 targets in Lebanon, which it claimed were sites of Hezbollah militants. According to multiple reports, Israel has also told its soldiers to prepare for a potential ground operation against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon as U.S. President Joe Biden cautioned against an "all-out war" in the Middle East.

According to NDTV, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, Israel's army chief has asked the tank brigade to prepare the ground for Israel's possible invasion in Lebanon.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Israel's operations against Hezbollah would continue until displaced northern residents could safely return home. This escalation followed Hezbollah's claim that it had targeted the Mossad spy agency headquarters near Tel Aviv, marking the first time in nearly a year that Hezbollah fired a ballistic missile amid cross-border clashes triggered by the ongoing Gaza conflict.

Meanwhile, United States, Israel's close ally stated that it did not think that Israeli troops' ground operation in Lebanon is "imminent". Speaking to reporters, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said, "It doesn't look like something is imminent," However, US President Joe Biden, warned of the possibility of "all-out war" in the Middle East.

"Full-scale war is not in anyone's interest. Even though the situation has escalated, a diplomatic solution is still possible," US President Joe Biden said in his farewell address to the UN.

"In fact, it remains the only path to lasting security to allow the residents from both countries to return to their homes on the border safely," Biden said ahead of an emergency UN Security Council session on Lebanon planned for Wednesday.

Biden's remarks drew disappointment from Lebanon's foreign minister Abdullah Bou Habib who said they were "not promising" and "would not solve the Lebanese problem," as he estimated that the number of people displaced by Israel's strikes has likely soared to reach half a million.