Hezbollah Attacks Multiple Israeli Military Sites – Largest Assault Since War
The Lebanese Resistance movement Hezbollah announced in a statement on Thursday that it had targeted nine Israeli military sites.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military reported attacking Hezbollah targets following the largest assault on northern Israel since the border clashes began.
Israeli media reported that approximately 150 missiles were fired from Lebanon towards Upper Galilee.
A source in Hezbollah told Al-Jazeera that 30 attack drones were launched towards the targeted Israeli military sites and that the complex attack aims to deter Israel and respond to the assassination of military commander Taleb Abdallah.
Large fires broke out in multiple settlements across northern Israel and the occupied Syrian Golan following the direct impact made by rockets fired by Hezbollah.
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The sirens sounded in Kiryat Shmona and surrounding areas in Upper Galilee due to suspected drone infiltration from southern Lebanon.
Sirens also sounded in over 25 settlements in the occupied Syrian Golan, the Hula Plain, and the Upper Galilee, with 12 missiles launched from southern Lebanon towards Israel.
Israeli media reported three explosions in Haifa and its surroundings.
The Israeli newspaper Maariv noted that around 150 rocket shells were fired from southern Lebanon in the latest barrage, affecting various areas in the Golan and Upper Galilee and causing fires in 15 locations.
The Israeli ambulance service reported two injuries due to a shell hitting a house in the Katsrin settlement in the occupied Golan.
Simultaneously, Israeli Radio confirmed that firefighting teams had been battling fires since Wednesday following shelling from southern Lebanon targeting sites in northern Israel.
Israeli media stated that the fires, caused by Hezbollah missiles, had spread over approximately 3,500 dunams in the Berea and Meron forests.
In southern Lebanon, our correspondent reported Israeli airstrikes in the vicinity of Wadi al-Hujair, Barghez, and the town of Dibin.
The Israeli military stated it had attacked Hezbollah targets and infrastructure in the towns of Aita al-Shaab and Ainata.
On Wednesday, Hezbollah launched 215 missiles, drones, and artillery shells at northern Israel, marking the largest attack since the current confrontations began.
US Warns Israel against War
According to the American news outlet Axios, the Biden administration has expressed deep concern over the escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah, fearing it could lead to an all-out war and complicate efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.
US officials have reportedly warned Israel against a “limited war” in Lebanon, highlighting the risk of Iranian intervention and an influx of pro-Iranian militants from Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
“The US is concerned about Israel rushing into a war with Hezbollah – or getting dragged into one – without a clear strategy or consideration of the full implications of a wider conflict,” Axios reported, citing officials.
Strategic Facilities at Risk
Hezbollah’s rocket attacks on northern Israel posed a threat to strategic sites and facilities, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Fire and Rescue Services North District Commander Yair Elkayam noted that teams were close to controlling the fires in the northern towns of Biriya, Kadita, Ein Zeitim, and Tziv’on.
The Israeli army announced that large fires broke out in northern Israel due to the interception of suspicious aerial objects launched from Lebanon.
Heightened Tensions
Since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza, on October 7, the Lebanese movement Hezbollah has engaged directly, but relatively in a limited way in the war against the Israeli occupation.
It attempted to re-occupy Lebanon in 2006 but failed in what Lebanon considers a major victory against Israel.
Israel has occupied parts of Lebanon for decades and has only left the country in 2000, following stiff Lebanese resistance under Hezbollah’s leadership.
Israel, however, continues to occupy parts of Lebanon, namely the Sheeba Farms region.
Hezbollah has vowed to recover every inch of Lebanon that has been occupied by Israel contrary to international law.
