A Hezbollah official said the militant group backed by Iran is giving a chance for mediators to secure a ceasefire in Lebanon.

In the meantime, the official said, "We have not announced our adherence to the ceasefire since the Israelis are not adhering to it."

The Israeli military chief of staff said on Wednesday that Israel will continue to "utilize every operational opportunity" to strike Hezbollah after the military said it struck more than 100 targets within 10 minutes across Lebanon, the largest wave of strikes since March 1.

Lt Gen. Eyal Zamir said Israel will continue striking Hezbollah to protect Israel’s northern residents, who have come under heavy fire from Hezbollah. The Israeli strikes caused panic during Lebanon’s afternoon rush hour as plumes of black smoke rose over several civilian neighborhoods across the capital.

Israel launched a series of strikes on Beirut on Wednesday, hitting several parts of the capital as well as its southern suburbs.

Loud booms could be heard throughout the city and smoke was rising from several points.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the ceasefire agreement between the U.S., Israel and Iran "fully includes Lebanon," which is in opposition to the stance taken by Israel as it continues an offensive there.

Macron said the inclusion of Lebanon in the deal is "a good and even essential thing."

Hezbollah legislator Ibrahim Al-Moussawi has warned of a response from Iran and its allies if Israel "does not adhere to a ceasefire."

His comment to local television channel Al-Jadeed is the first from the militant group in Lebanon after the U.S. and Iran reached a ceasefire agreement mediated by Pakistan.

President Joseph Aoun welcomed on Wednesday the two-week ceasefire agreed by the United States and Iran, saying he hoped his country would be included in the regional truce.

Aoun said Beirut "continued efforts to ensure that the regional peace includes Lebanon in a stable and lasting manner", according to a statement from the presidency.

Ukraine is proposing to Russia a pause in attacks on each other's energy infrastructure over the Orthodox Easter holiday, which will be observed this coming weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The offer was made through the United States, which has been mediating talks between delegations from Moscow and Kyiv, Zelensky said, as Russia's invasion stretches into a fifth year.

Two years ago, Dr. Mohammed Ziara watched Israel ravage Gaza's health care system, shelling hospitals, striking ambulances and forcing patients to evacuate.

Now Ziara — along with many other medical workers, human rights groups and civilians — warns that the same scenario is unfolding in Lebanon.

An Iranian official early Tuesday issued a video message calling on youths of the Islamic Republic to form “human chains” around power plants in the country ahead of threatened strikes by U.S. President Donald

Alireza Rahimi, identified by Iranian state television as the secretary of the Supreme Council of Youth and Adolescents, issued the video call in a newscast.

A U.S. fighter jet was shot down in Iran on Friday and one crew member was rescued, officials said, the first aircraft downed since the war began nearly five weeks ago.

It marked a major escalation in the conflict just two days after President Donald Trump said in a national address that the U.S. has "beaten and completely decimated Iran" and was "going to finish the job, and we're going to finish it very fast."