The September 2024 Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon was a series of air raids launched by the Israeli Air Force against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, thwarting the second wave of Hezbollah's planned revenge attacks on Israel.
On 19 September 2024, following two days of detonations of Hezbollah's wireless devices by Israel's Mossad agency (which killed 37 and injured over 3,450), Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah gave a possibly pre-recorded speech in Beirut in which he conceded that Hezbollah had suffered a major blow and vowed a "reckoning" against Israel in retaliation for its "declaration of war" or "war crime." During Nasrallah's speech, Israeli Air Force warplanes dropped flares over Beirut and caused a sonic boom. On the same day, the IDF began carrying out airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, hitting approximately 100 rocket launchers. The IDF also claimed to have struck 1,000 barrels that were ready to be used in the immediate future to fire toward Israeli territory. At least 52 airstrikes occurred between 9 and 10 PM on 19 September, as Hezbollah launched 17 attacks on military sites in northern Israel. On that same day, Israeli sources reported that Israeli officials were deciding whether the IDF would conduct an offensive into Lebanon, as Israel began redeploying military assets to the north to focus less on the Israel-Hamas War and more on pacifying the country's northern frontier.
On 20 September 2024, Hezbollah fired 130 rockets into northern Israel, targeting the main air defense base of the Israeli Northern Command and the air and missile defense headquarters at the Kilaa barracks. At the same time, Israeli aircraft launched more airstrikes on South Lebanon, targeting the town of Yaroun. On the same day, the IDF carried out a targeted strike in Beirut, killing senior Hezbollah leader Ibrahim Aqil and several other Radwan Force commanders as they planned a raid on the Galilee to capture Israeli hostages.
On 21 and 22 September, Israel conducted a large-scale airstrike campaign across Lebanon, targeting over 400 rocket launchers, thousands of rocket barrels, and other military infrastructure on 21 September to prevent Hezbollah from firing on Haifa and other northern Israeli towns. On 22 September, Israel conducted another wave of airstrikes on dozens of Hezbollah rocket launchers and military infrastructure to degrade Hezbollah forces. On 23 September 2024, the conflict experienced a massive escalation when the Israeli Air Force conducted over 300 airstrikes in South Lebanon, killing at least 182 people and wounding over 720 others. Hezbollah retaliated by launching dozens of rockets at Israel. The UN advised all posted civilian employees to evacuate South Lebanon, while the Israeli military advised Lebanese civilians in South Lebanon to evacuate north ahead of airstrikes on homes used by Hezbollah to store weapons. By the day's end, the 23 September strikes had killed over 492 people and injured over 1,645, and the IDF proclaimed the start of Operation Arrows of the North.