US officials believe Israel will target military and energy sites in Iran, NBC reports

U.S. officials believe Israel has narrowed down targets in its potential response to Iran's attack this month to military and energy infrastructure, NBC reported on Saturday.

The Middle East remains on high alert for further escalation in a year of war as Israel battles Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly said it will respond to Iran's missile attack on October 1, which was launched in retaliation for Israel's military operations in Gaza and Lebanon and its July airstrike on Tehran, Iran which resulted in the death of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

There is no indication that Israel will target nuclear facilities or carry out assassinations, the NBC report said, citing unnamed U.S. officials and adding that Israel has not made final decisions about how and when to act.

U.S. and Israeli officials said a response could come during the current Yom Kippur holiday, according to the report.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah militants restarted a year ago when Hezbollah began launching rockets at northern Israel at the start of the Gaza war, and has sharply escalated in recent weeks.

Intensifying regional conflict

Hezbollah said on Sunday it was fighting Israeli forces trying to infiltrate Ramya village in southern Lebanon, as a third U.N. peacekeeper was wounded in Israel's escalating conflict with the Lebanese group.

Israel has intensified its military operations in recent weeks, bombing southern Lebanon, Beirut's southern suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, killing some of Hezbollah's top leaders, and sending ground troops across the border.

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) said Hezbollah had fired nearly 320 projectiles from Lebanon into Israel on Saturday, without giving further details. It declared areas around some towns in north Israel closed to the public.

Israel issued evacuation orders to residents of 23 southern Lebanese villages to move north of the Awali River, which flows from the western Bekaa Valley into the Mediterranean.

The IDF said evacuations were necessary for the safety of residents due to increased Hezbollah activity, claiming the group is using sites to conceal weapons and launch attacks on Israel.

Hezbollah denies concealing weapons among civilians.

Israel's expanded operation has displaced more than 1.2 million people, according to Lebanon's government, which says more than 2,100 people have been killed and 10,000 wounded in over a year of fighting.

In a sign of a spreading conflict, a Syrian security source told Reuters the U.S.-led coalition in Syria had targeted Iran-linked sites near northeastern Syria's Deir el-Zor airport on Friday night.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said in a statement on Sunday it had targeted a military site in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights with drones as part of its support of the Palestinian people and Lebanon. It said it would continue escalating attacks against Israeli strongholds.

On Saturday, Islamic Resistance issued three statements saying it targeted the Golan Heights and another saying it targeted the Israeli port of Eilat with drones.

UN peacekeepers under fire; US calls for 'diplomatic pathway'

Israeli strikes have hit the peacekeepers' main base in southern Lebanon, prompting U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Western countries to condemn the attacks. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) force called it a "serious development" and said the security of U.N. personnel and property must be guaranteed.

France summoned Israel's ambassador and issued a statement with Italy and Spain calling such attacks "unjustifiable". U.S. President Joe Biden said he was asking Israel not to hit UNIFIL forces. Russia said it was "outraged" and demanded Israel refrain from "hostile actions" against peacekeepers.

Spanish peacekeepers of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) coordinate their patrol with the Lebanese Military Police, in Marjayoun in south Lebanon on October 8, 2024. AFP

UNIFIL said on Saturday a third peacekeeper was wounded in an Israeli strike when he was hit by gunfire on Friday, adding that the man was stable after undergoing surgery to remove the bullet.

The UNIFIL statement said its position in the southern Lebanese town of Ramiya had sustained significant damage due to explosions following nearby shelling, but did not specify who was responsible for either attack.

Two U.N. peacekeepers were wounded by an Israeli strike near their watchtower at the UNIFIL's main base in Naqoura in southern Lebanon on Friday. UNIFIL has more than 10,000 personnel, with Italy, France, Malaysia, Indonesia and India among the biggest contributors.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a call with Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, expressed "deep concern" about reports that Israeli forces had fired on U.N. peacekeeping positions in Lebanon in recent days and urged Israel to ensure safety for them and the Lebanese military, the Pentagon said.

Austin also "reinforced the need to pivot from military operations in Lebanon to a diplomatic pathway as soon as feasible", it said in a statement.

Israel has rejected calls by the United States and other allies for a ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza.