ANKARA

The Israeli army launched a series of air raids on southern Lebanon, targeting the towns of Hula and Tayr Harfa, according to Lebanon's official National News Agency.

The attacks in Tayr Harfa targeted multiple homes in the town's center, while in Hula, the airstrikes hit the Tal al-Hanbal neighborhood.

The news agency did not report any casualties from the attacks.

The Israeli military has not yet issued a statement regarding the airstrikes.

Fears have grown of a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah amid a months-long exchange of cross-border fire, especially with the Lebanese group Hezbollah threatening military retaliation after the assassination of its top commander Fuad Shukr in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut on July 30.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of an Israeli onslaught against the Gaza Strip which has killed nearly 39,800 victims since October since an attack by the Palestine resistance group, Hamas.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi