Hundreds of pagers carried by Hezbollah members blew up nearly simultaneously in an attack that tops a series of covert assassinations and cyber-attacks in the region.

The unprecedented attack, followed by explosions of walkie-talkies, comes after Israeli officials warned about escalating tensions on the Lebanese border.

Lebanese authorities on Thursday banned walkie-talkies and pagers from being taken on flights from Beirut airport, the National News Agency reported, after thousands of such devices exploded during a deadly attack on Hezbollah this week.

The explosions linked to the electronic devices killed at least 20 people and injured more than 450 across Lebanon on Wednesday, a day after 12 people were killed and thousands wo

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant did say on Wednesday, however, that his country's war with Iran's so-called proxy groups in the region had entered a "new phase," announcing a shift to the north of Israel after 11 months of intense conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military says its airstrike on a neighborhood of Beirut killed Ibrahim Akil, a senior Hezbollah military official.

Hezbollah pounded northern Israel with 140 rockets Friday, a day after the militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah vowed to retaliate against Israel for a mass bombing attack, the Israeli military and the militant group said.