Escalation suggests Israel gambling on bombing Hezbollah into ceasefire

Efforts to bring peace to Gaza prove fruitless as Israel increases airstrikes on Lebanon and Hezbollah return fire with deadlier missiles

It is now clear that last Tuesday's exploding pager operation was just a first step. What is now unfolding is an Israeli strategy of military escalation against Hezbollah, premised on the risky belief that the militant group can be bombed into a ceasefire before fighting in Gaza ends.

Monday's wave of airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed at least 558 people and displaced many thousands, and there is little sign of the campaign slowing. Israel's air force has said it had dropped 2,000 bombs in 24 hours - and there can be little doubt that this is now a full-on war, though it is not yet an all-out conflict.