Hezbollah admits Israel dealt a severe blow with exploding pagers and walkie talkies, but neither side seems to heed U.S. calls to avoid a wider war.

Israel is believed to have conducted a series of clandestine attacks on adversaries linked to Iran in recent years, sometimes using highly innovative tactics.

For Hizbollah the strike is a humiliation, while some Israelis see it as a prelude to a wider offensive in Lebanon