Hezbollah to hit new areas in Israel if it keeps targeting civilians, Nasrallah says
Adds background in paragraphs 3 & 5, Nasrallah and background in paragraphs 10-12
BEIRUT, July 17 (Reuters) -Hezbollah will hit new Israeli targets if Israel keeps targeting civilians in Lebanon, the group's leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Wednesday, noting a spike in the number of non-combatants killed in Lebanon in recent days.
Five civilians, all Syrians and including three children, were killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon on Tuesday and at least three Lebanese civilians were killed the day before, according to state media and security sources.
Israel has said it is striking Hezbollah militants and infrastructure in Lebanon and does not target civilians.
"Continuing to target civilians will push the Resistance to launch missiles at settlements that were not previously targeted," Nasrallah said, in comments made during a televised address to mark the Shi'ite holy day Ashoura.
Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group and the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon, refers to all Israeli population centres as settlements and does not recognise Israel.
Israel and Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's ensuing military offensive in Gaza.
Iran-aligned groups in the region, including Shi'ite armed factions in Syria and Iraq and Yemen's Houthis, have also been firing on Israel since shortly after Oct. 7.
In Lebanon, the fighting has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.
Nasrallah promised that totally or partially destroyed homes would be rebuilt "more beautiful than they were before."
Nasrallah also played down Israel's ability to fight a full-scale war in Lebanon, saying its military capabilities had been degraded in Gaza and asserting that all of the Israeli army's tanks would face destruction should they enter Lebanon.
Fears have grown in recent weeks among international observers that Israel may expand its military operations in Lebanon, risking a wider war.
Israel has said it is undertaking the necessary preparations for a wider operation but no decision has yet been made. Hezbollah has said it does not want war with Israel but is ready for it.
Reporting by Laila Bassam and Timour Azhari in Beirut and Clauda Tanios in Dubai; Writing by Timour Azhari; Editing by Sharon Singleton and Hugh Lawson
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