After killing a leader, Hezbollah fires dozens of rockets towards Israel
The Israeli army announced that it had monitored the launching of dozens of rockets from Lebanon towards the Hebrew state in attacks that Hezbollah said were a “response” to the commander, identified as Talib Abdullah, also known as Hajj Abu Talib. Abu assignation” of a prominent leader in its ranks, raising fears of an escalation between the two parties.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets toward Israel on Wednesday (June 12, 2024) in response to an Israeli airstrike that killed a senior field commander in the group, heightening tensions between the two sides on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Iran-backed Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israel since the Gaza war broke out in October, with fighting escalating and raising fears of a wider confrontation.
Three security sources said an Israeli air strike on the village of Joya in southern Lebanon late Tuesday killed three fighters and a senior Hezbollah field Talib was the most prominent Hezbollah member to be killed in clashes between the group and Israel, one of the sources said. The sources said he was the group’s commander in the southern border strip’s central region. His funeral is scheduled for later Wednesday.
The Israeli army announced Wednesday that it had detected dozens of rockets being fired from Lebanon toward the Jewish state in attacks that Hezbollah said were in “response” to the “assassination” of a senior Hezbollah leader in an Israeli strike, raising fears of a wider escalation between the two sides.
A security source in Lebanon said Hezbollah fired more than 100 rockets in response to the raid, describing it as one of the most significant rocket attacks carried out by the group since the clashes began in October.
Hezbollah announced that it launched at least four attacks, including a guided missile attack on an Israeli military industries factory, in response to what it described as an “assassination operation” carried out by Israel in Juba.
The group also said in statements that it attacked Israeli military headquarters in Ein Zeitim and Amiad and an Israeli army air control unit at the Meron base, in each case firing dozens of Katyusha rockets. Sirens sounded in northern Israel.
Hezbollah is deployed on both sides of the eastern border between Lebanon and Syria, particularly in the Qusayr area. Many countries consider the Lebanese Hezbollah, or its military wing, a terrorist organization. These countries include the United States, the European Union, Britain, and most member states of the Arab League.
Germany also banned the party’s activities on its territory in 2020 and classified it as a “terrorist organization.” Israel said it had detected about 90 projectiles coming from Lebanon, some of which were intercepted, and the rest fell in several locations in northern Israel, causing fires in several areas. The Israeli army said that “some of them were intercepted, while others fell in several areas in the north of the country and caused several fires.”
In another statement, the Israeli army announced that it had monitored the launch of “about 70 more rockets” from Lebanon, noting that “the details are under examination, without any injuries.” According to the statement, Israeli aircraft attacked a platform in the Yaroun area in southern Lebanon, “which was used to launch shells” towards northern Israel in the morning.
The Israeli ambulance service, Magen David Adom, confirmed no injuries had been reported in the country’s north. About 300 Hezbollah fighters have been killed, more than the group lost in 2006, according to a Reuters tally, which also puts the death toll at 80 civilians. Israel says attacks from Lebanon have killed 18 Israeli soldiers and ten civilians. The Israeli military said it killed more than 320 Hezbollah members, including at least 100 who were targeted after field agents gathered “precise intelligence” about them.
