Dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel on Thursday, the Israeli military said, in a major escalation that comes amid tensions over Israeli police raids at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.
It was the largest such attack since a 2006 war between the two countries left around 1,200 Lebanese people and 165 Israelis dead in an exchange of fire that involved a nationwide Israeli aerial assault, and a naval and aerial blockade, after Hezbollah militants crossed from Lebanon into Israel and ambushed two Israeli Army vehicles, killing three soldiers and capturing two other soldiers.
Israel closed its northern airspace in the wake of the barrage. No deaths were reported as of Thursday afternoon, and it is not yet known which group in Lebanon launched the rockets.
Videos posted on social media showed rockets streaking through the skies over northern Israel, and the sounds of explosions in the distance.
The Lebanese army told CNN it had no information to release publicly yet; the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah told CNN it would not comment at the moment. The incident comes a day after the leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, arrived in Beirut for meetings with Hezbollah officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he was “receiving continuous updates about the security situation and will conduct an assessment with the heads of the security establishment.” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant was also briefed about “recent security events on Israel’s northern border,” the defense ministry said.
Tensions are sky-high in the region after Israeli police stormed the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on two separate occasions Wednesday, as Palestinian worshipers offered prayers during the holy month of Ramadan.
Footage from inside the mosque showed Israeli officers beating people with their batons and rifle-butts, then arresting hundreds of Palestinians. Israeli police said they entered the mosque after “hundreds of rioters” tried to barricade themselves inside.
The incident, which was met with widespread condemnation from the Arab and Muslim world, sparked retaliatory rocket fire from Gaza into Israel.
There have been several small-scale rocket attacks from Lebanon in recent years that have prompted retaliatory strikes from Israel. Few casualties were reported in those incidents, with the largest death toll in an exchange of fire in 2015 that left two Israeli soldiers and a Spanish peacekeeper dead. Palestinian factions in Lebanon were believed to be behind those rocket attacks.
Reaction in Lebanon
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Thursday blasted the Lebanese government after dozens of rockets were fired from south Lebanon at northern Israel.
“What are the national obligations that necessitate firing dozens of rockets from south Lebanon at Israel at this very moment and what will the Lebanese government’s response be regarding its pledges to commit to the stipulations of Resolution 1701 ?” Geagea asked in a statement.
“By ceding the state’s strategic decision to the axis of resistance , the Lebanese government would be renouncing its main responsibilities of preserving the security of the country and its citizens,” Geagea warned.
He added : “A presidential candidate who would not pledge to return the entire strategic decision to the Lebanese state would not be eligible to be a candidate nor a president.”
Lebanon remains without a president and will not have a one anytime soon, despite the efforts of France , Egypt, Saudi Arabia , Qatar and the US . These countries are trying to identify a leader who can unite the country after the Lebanese parliament failed to elect a president after 11 rounds
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