Israel-Gaza-Lebanon updates: IDF begins ground incursion into Lebanon

Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee — the Israel Defense Forces’ spokesperson for Arab media — warned residents of southern Lebanon on Tuesday morning that “heavy fighting” is now underway in the region.

“Hezbollah elements,” he said, are “using the civilian environment and the population as human shields to launch attacks.”

Adraee told residents not to move vehicles from the north to the south of the Litani River, which is around 18 miles north of the Israeli border. Israel previously demanded that all Hezbollah forces withdraw north of the waterway in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolution that sought to end the 2006 border war.

“This warning is in effect until further notice,” Adraee said.

The IDF said Monday that its ground offensive into Lebanon was underway, following a week of punishing airstrikes and targeted killings across the country.

The IDF described the operations as “limited, localized, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon.”

A senior U.S. official told ABC News that the incursion is expected to be significant but not “major.” Lebanese leaders, meanwhile, are calling for an immediate ceasefire and the implementation of the 2006 U.N. resolution that would see Hezbollah forces leave southern Lebanon.

-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and Ghazi Balkiz