Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday announced that Israel will widen its invasion of southern Lebanon.

Netanyahu said Israel would expand what he called the "existing security strip" in Lebanon as Israeli forces continue to target the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group.

"We are determined to fundamentally change the situation in the north," he said on a visit to northern Israel, adding that Hezbollah still retained "residual capabilities" to fire rockets at Israel, but the group had been severely hit by Israeli forces.

Israel has pounded Lebanon with airstrikes and launched a ground offensive in the south since a cross-border attack by Hezbollah on March 2.

Lebanese authorities said that 1,238 have since been killed and 3,315 others wounded in the Israeli assault.

The escalation came amid a joint U.S.-Israeli offensive on Iran, which has killed more than 1,340 people since Feb. 28. Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, U.S. bases and Gulf countries.