Any ground invasion or other further military intervention in Lebanon by Israel “has to be avoided”, European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell has said, according to Irish Times.

Foreign affairs ministers from the 27 EU countries discussed the escalating conflict between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbullah during an emergency video conference call on Monday.

The meeting was hastily scheduled as fears grow of a possible Israeli ground invasion of southern Lebanon, following a barrage of missile attacks over the last two weeks that killed several Hezbullah commanders, including Hezbollah's long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah.

More than 1,000 Lebanese people have been killed and several thousand wounded in the strikes, which have also led an estimated one million people to flee their homes, according to the government in Lebanon. Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem has said the group would resist any ground invasion.