Israel said it deployed more forces in Lebanon to protect its people, but its military chief said the goal is more ambitious: to disarm Hezbollah. Israel made plans for the incursion well in advance.

As Israel intensifies its campaign against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia, Lebanon is now teetering on the brink of being fully sucked into the escalating US and Israeli war on Iran – a fate the fragile Lebanese government has been desperate to avoid.

By Emma Farge and Olivia Le Poidevin GENEVA, March 3 (Reuters) - At least 30,000 displaced people have sought protection in shelters in Lebanon since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah escalated this week,

As the war in Iran intensifies, humanitarian groups warn the civilian toll is mounting across the Middle East.

As Washington's allies in the Gulf came under renewed attack from Iranian missiles and drones, black smoke rose above the area around the U.S. embassy in Kuwait. There were loud blasts in Dubai and Samha in the United Arab Emirates, and in the Qatari capital Doha.

Trump added that he had ordered oil tanker insurance support, a move that marks an aggressive step to try to contain soaring energy prices.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that he had called on Israel to respect Lebanon's territorial integrity and refrain from a ground offensive. Macron said in a post on social media X that he had spoken earlier in the day with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,

NICOSIA, March 4 (Reuters) - Cyprus ⁠said ⁠a suspect object had ⁠been detected close to Lebanese airspace on ​Wednesday, and a government source said two Greek ‌F-16 fighter jets had ‌been scrambled to intercept it. The alert ⁠was ⁠called off more than an hour later.