BERLIN, March 16. /TASS/. Israel’s decision to launch a ground operation in Lebanon was a mistake, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters in Berlin.

In his opinion, the operation "will make the already dire humanitarian situation in Lebanon even worse," causing another wave of displacement of the region’s population.

"That is why we strongly urge our Israeli friends not to take this path. It would be a mistake," the chancellor said.

Overnight into March 2, the north of Israel came under a shelling attack from Lebanese territory. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that it had launched rockets on Israeli territory in response to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Following Hezbollah’s rocket attack, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) began to deliver massive air strikes on Lebanese territory. Later, Chief of the Israeli General Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir announced an "offensive campaign" against the Shia group Hezbollah that he said could be days-long.

On March 9, the IDF began "a targeted and limited raid" in southern Lebanon to dismantle Hezbollah’s infrastructure. On March 16, the IDF said that it had begun limited ground operations in Lebanon’s southern regions against key Hezbollah fortifications.