We're going to wrap up our live coverage of the Middle East war here.

But we will continue to update you on the night's events here.

Here are some of today's key events to get you up to speed:

• A missile barrage affected almost the entire country of Israel
  
• Iran said it would keep firing if Israel responded
  
• Six were killed in a suspected stabbing an shooting in Tel Aviv
• The White House said the US Navy helped shoot down Iranian missiles
• Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran would "pay" for the attack
• Seats were secured for Australians to leave on Thursday
• More air strikes hit Beirut
• The Houthis announces a planned operation against Israel
• Israel's foreign minister banned the UN secretary-general from entering the country
• Hezbollah clashed with Israeli forces in south Lebanon

Thank you for joining us.

You can take a look back at all the developments below, or download the ABC News app and subscribe to our range of news alerts for the latest updates.

Hezbollah militants are clashing with Israeli forces who had "infiltrated" the southern border town of Maroun Al-Ras, the group has said in a statement.

It said IDF soldiers had come from the east and added the clash was "ongoing".

The clash comes after Hezbollah said earlier it had repelled an attempted infiltration elsewhere.

Media chief Mohammad Afif added Hezbollah was "only in the first round" of clashes.

Reporting with Reuters

It appears the IDF is expanding the scope of what it says is a 'limited incursion' into Lebanon to cover the whole strip of southern Lebanon.

The Israeli military's Arabic spokesperson Avishay Adraee warned Lebanese via his X account that, as of now and until further notice, people must not travel in vehicles from north of the Litani River to south of it or they will be putting themselves in danger.

The Litani River was part of the 2006 United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 that was intended to end the 2006 Lebanon War between Israel and Hezbollah.

The last leg of the 174-kilometre river flows parallel to the Lebanon-Israel border, just 29 kilometres north of it.

The resolution called for Israeli forces to withdraw from Lebanon and that no armed forces other than UNIFIL and the Lebanese military be present between the Litani River and the border.

Israel's military occupied that strip of land for 18 years to protect its northern communities from militants' rockets. But it was eventually forced out by Hezbollah, whose attacks on the Israeli military were relentless.

The Israeli public, tired of seeing their sons killed in southern Lebanon, pushed for an end to the Israeli 'buffer zone'. 

Ehud Barak campaigned to be prime minister promising to withdraw within a year. He won and in May 2000, Israel ended its occupation of southern Lebanon, although a few small parts remained in dispute.

Now, some Israelis hope to reoccupy the land. Some also hope to make settlements there. It's unclear at this point whether Israel intends to keep its ground forces in southern Lebanon.

Lebanese official media said an Israeli strike has targeted Beirut's southern suburbs again this morning, local time, after a night of repeated strikes on the area.

"Israeli aircraft targeted the southern suburbs with a strike," the National News Agency reported.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz has decided to declare UN Secretary-General António Guterres persona non grata in Israel and to ban him from entering the country.

"Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran's heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil," he said in a statement.

"Guterres will be remembered as a stain on the history of the UN for generations to come."

The decision comes after António Guterres responded to Iran's missile attack on Israel, in which he condemned the "broadening of the Middle East conflict" and called for a ceasefire but did not mention Iran by name.

"This continues his anti-Israel policy since the beginning of the war," the statement continued.

It complained that António Guterres "had yet to denounce" Hamas' October 7 attack and "has not led any resolutions to declare them a terrorist organization". 

It accused him of having provided "support" to "Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and now Iran".

"Israel will continue to defend its citizens and uphold its national dignity, with or without António Guterres."

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has spoken to his US counterpart Antony Blinken to coordinate diplomatic efforts in the Middle East, with plans to hold talks in Berlin later today.

"France condemns the attack on Israel by ballistic missiles fired from Iran," the French foreign ministry said in a statement, after President Emmanuel Macron said earlier that French military resources had been mobilised in the Middle East in response.

"It reiterates its absolute commitment to the security of Israel. It participated through its military means in the Middle East to counter the Iranian threat."

It gave no further details on what role it had played in countering the Iranian attack, but an official said France had participated on Tuesday night to stop Iranian missiles.

The United Nations Security Council will meet soon to discuss the escalation.

Reporting with Reuters

Both British Airways and Air France have now extended flight cancellations to Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport until at least early next week, including the October 7 one-year anniversary of Hamas' attack on Israel.

Traffic over the Istanbul, Cairo and Antalya hubs remain dense as flights continue to avoid parts of Middle Eastern airspace, according to FlightRadar24.

Dubai International Airport has reported 85 per cent of its departing flights as delayed, while Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport had 60 per cent of its flights cancelled, according to the airline tracker.

At Kuwait International Airport, 67 per cent of arriving flights have been delayed.

Reporting with Reuters

In this ABC News report by Middle East correspondent Allyson Horn, Israel residents are seen reacting to Iran's ballistic missile attack as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows Iran will "pay for it".

"It was extremely scary. Nothing that we could have anticipated," one resident said.

Watch the full report below.

India said on Wednesday it was "deeply concerned" by the escalating conflict in West Asia and urged for restraint and protection of civilians as Israel prepared to retaliate against a barrage of Iranian missile strikes.

"It is important that the conflict doesn't take a wider regional dimension and we urge that all issues be addressed through dialogue and diplomacy," India's foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

New Delhi also advised its nationals on Wednesday to avoid all non-essential travel to Iran.

Reuters

More than 200 Chinese citizens have been safely evacuated from Lebanon by the government, China's official Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday.

Reuters