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ISRAEL launched airstrikes on several locations in Lebanon on Saturday in retaliation for a rocket attack, killing six people in the heaviest exchange of fire since its ceasefire with the militant group Hezbollah began nearly four months ago.
AP reported today, the exchange sparked concern about whether the ceasefire would hold, days after Israel relaunched its war with another Iran-backed militant group, Hamas, in Gaza.
In a statement, Hezbollah denied being responsible for the attack, saying it was committed to the truce.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it instructed the army to respond forcefully against dozens of targets in Lebanon, where the Iran-backed Hezbollah is based.
Israel’s army said six rockets were fired toward Metula, a town along the border with Lebanon. Three crossed into Israel and were intercepted.
The army said it “cannot confirm the identity of the organisation that fired the rockets.” It said it struck Hezbollah command centers and dozens of rocket launchers.
An Israeli strike on the southern Lebanese village of Touline killed five people, including a child, and wounded 10 others, including two children, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported.
Another Israeli strike Saturday night hit a garage in the coastal city of Tyre, the NNA reported, with one person killed and seven wounded.
It was the first attack on the city since the ceasefire took effect Nov. 27. And a strike on Hawsh al-Sayed Ali village along the border with Syria wounded five people, according to the NNA.
In a statement, Lebanon’s prime minister, Nawaf Salam, asked the country’s military to take all necessary measures in the south, but said the country does not want to return to war.
Hezbollah began launching rockets, drones and missiles into Israel the day after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack out of Gaza ignited the war there.
The Israel-Hezbollah conflict boiled over into all-out war in September as Israel carried out waves of airstrikes and killed most of the militant group’s senior leaders. The fighting killed over 4,000 people in Lebanon and displaced about 60,000 Israelis.
Israeli forces were supposed to withdraw from all Lebanese territory by late January under the ceasefire deal.
The deadline was extended to Feb. 18, but Israel has remained in five locations in Lebanon across from communities in northern Israel.
Meanwhile, Israel has carried out dozens of airstrikes on southern and eastern Lebanon, saying it attacked Hezbollah, while continuing drone attacks that have killed several members of the militant group.
Lebanon has appealed to the U.N. to pressure Israel to fully withdraw. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said it was alarmed at the possible escalation of violence and urged all parties to avoid jeopardizing the progress made.
Israeli airstrikes pound Gaza
The strikes came a day after Israel said it would carry out operations in Gaza “with increasing intensity” until Hamas frees the 59 hostages it holds — 24 of whom are believed to be alive.
Israeli strikes on Friday night killed at least nine people, including three children, in a house in Gaza City, according to Al-Ahli Hospital, which received the bodies.
“Rubble and glass started falling on us,” said Sameh al-Mashharawi, who lost his brother in the attack. He mourned with his young nephew Samir al-Mashharawi, whose parents and siblings were killed.
The 12-year-old, his head and wrists bandaged, sat in the back of a truck and cried.
Israel’s military said Friday that its forces were planning fresh assaults into three neighborhoods west of Gaza City and issued warnings on social media for Palestinians to evacuate the areas. – March 23, 2025
