Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli airstrike in Zibqin in southern Lebanon on August 25, 2024, amid an escalation of ongoing cross-border tensions as fighting continues between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
Kawnat Haju | Afp | Getty Images
Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel on Sunday in retaliation for the killing of a senior commander in Beirut last month, the Iran-backed movement said, as Israel’s cabinet met to prepare a response.
Israeli warplanes struck targets in Lebanon shortly before the strikes as the military assessed that Hezbollah was preparing to launch the barrage, the military said.
Hezbollah said it had fired more than 320 Katyusha rockets at Israel and hit 11 military targets. It said the barrage had completed “the first phase” of its response to the killing of Fouad Soukr, a senior commander, in Beirut, but that a full response would take “some time”.
Expectations of escalation between the two sides had grown since a rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights last month killed 12 youths and the Israeli military assassinated Shukr in Beirut in response.
Israel’s cabinet was scheduled to meet at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Israel will respond to developments on the ground, but does not seek full-scale war. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel will do whatever it takes to defend itself.
“We have conducted precision strikes in Lebanon to prevent an imminent threat against the citizens of Israel. We are closely monitoring developments in Beirut and are determined to use all means at our disposal to defend our citizens,” Gallant said. in a statement.
A Hezbollah UAV flies over northern Israel on August 25, 2024.
Jalaa Marey | Afp | Getty Images
Most of the Israeli strikes hit targets in southern Lebanon, but the army was ready to strike anywhere there was a threat, an Israeli military spokesman said.
Gallant declared a state of emergency and flights to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport were suspended for about 90 minutes, but the airports authority said normal operations were expected to resume at 7 a.m.
In northern Israel, warning sirens sounded and multiple explosions were heard around various areas as Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system shot down rockets coming from southern Lebanon. Israel’s Magen David Adom Ambulance Service said it was on high alert across the country.
The Israeli military issued civil defense directives from central Israel to the north, limiting gatherings but allowing people to go to work as long as they could quickly reach air raid shelters. No casualties were immediately reported in Israel, according to the ambulance service.
Fears of regional conflicts
A security source in Lebanon said at least 40 Israeli strikes hit various towns in the country’s south in one of the heaviest bombardments since hostilities began in October.
A boy walks past cars destroyed in a recent Israeli attack on August 24, 2024 in Mays Al-Jabal, Lebanon.
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A resident of the southern Lebanese town of Zibqeen, about 7 kilometers (4 miles) from the border, told Reuters it was the first time he woke up “to the sound of planes and loud rocket explosions – even before dawn. It felt like the apocalypse.”
Israel’s Military Radio, citing defense officials, said the military estimated Hezbollah was preparing to fire hundreds of rockets into central Israel in an attack planned for 5 am.
About 100 Israeli warplanes intercepted Hezbollah missile strikes, launching their attack half an hour earlier, the report said, adding that the military assessed that Hezbollah’s subsequent barrage was “improvised.”
“Dozens of (Israeli Air Force) aircraft are currently striking targets in various locations in southern Lebanon. We continue to remove threats and intensively strike the Hezbollah terrorist group,” said military spokesman Vice Admiral Daniel Haggari.
The Israel-Hezbollah escalation has raised fears of a wider regional conflict, potentially involving both the United States and Iran. President Joe Biden was following the events closely, the White House said.
A Hezbollah UAV is intercepted by the Israeli Air Force over northern Israel on August 25, 2024.
Jalaa Marey | Afp | Getty Images
“Under his guidance, senior US officials are in constant communication with their Israeli counterparts. We will continue to support Israel’s right to defend itself and continue to work for regional stability,” said National Security Council spokesman Sean Savet.
The strikes came as negotiators met in Cairo in a last-ditch effort to end the fighting in Gaza and return Israeli and foreign hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel immediately after Hamas gunmen attacked Israel on October 7. Hezbollah and Israel have been constantly exchanging fire since then, while avoiding a major escalation as the Gaza war rages to the south.
That precarious balance appeared to be shifting after the strike on the Golan Heights, for which Hezbollah denied responsibility, and the killing of Shukr, one of Hezbollah’s top military commanders in Beirut.
Shukr’s death in an air strike quickly followed the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which led to Iranian vows of retaliation against Israel.
