Jerusalem: The Israeli military carried out airstrikes in Lebanon early Sunday targeting positions of the Shiite militia Hezbollah, saying the attacks were carried out as the extremist group “prepared to fire missiles and rockets towards Israeli territory.” Shortly after, Hezbollah announced on Sunday morning that it had attacked Israel with a large number of drones in revenge for the killing of one of its commanders in Beirut.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he and his Defense Minister Yoav Galant were managing the operation from military headquarters in Tel Aviv. Galant declared a “special situation on the domestic front.” The attacks have raised the risk of a full-scale war breaking out in the region and could derail efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Israeli army issued a statement claiming that Hezbollah was “preparing to fire missiles and rockets towards Israeli territory”. Israeli army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagar said, “To avoid these threats, (the Israeli army) is attacking in self-defense those terrorist bases in Lebanon from where Hezbollah was plotting to attack the civilians of Israel.”
Hagar warned that Hezbollah would “soon fire rockets and possibly missiles” and drones at Israel. Soon after, sirens sounded in northern Israel. Meanwhile, Hezbollah said it had “targeted an important Israeli military site and information about this site will be given later” and that “several enemy sites and barracks and ‘Iron Dome’ platforms were also targeted.”
He said the attacks were in response to the killing of the group’s top commander Fouad Shukur in an attack in Beirut’s southern suburbs last month. Earlier, the Israeli military announced strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, saying the extremist group was preparing to attack Israel.
Lebanese media reported attacks in the south of the country but did not give details. Some videos on social media appeared to show attacks in southern Lebanon. Flights arriving at Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv were diverted and other flights delayed on Sunday following Israeli air strikes in Lebanon.
Israeli media reported this news quoting the Israel Airports Authority. Flight tracking data, which monitors flight movements, showed that at least two flights of EL AI turned south and changed their route after the announcement.
Hagar said in his statement, “We can see that Hezbollah is preparing to launch a large-scale attack on Israel, endangering Lebanese civilians.” Hagar did not give any further details about this intelligence. He said, “We warn the citizens living in the areas where Hezbollah is active to leave immediately for their safety.”
The death of a top Hezbollah commander in an Israeli attack and the death of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in a suspected Israeli attack in Iran have raised fears that the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip could turn into a regional conflict. These attacks have been carried out at a time when Egypt is hosting a new round of talks to end Israel’s war against Hamas. Hezbollah has said that it will stop the war if a ceasefire agreement is reached. Israel began attacks on Gaza after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. Hezbollah has been attacking Israel since then. Hezbollah is considered to be much more powerful than its ally Hamas and has an estimated stockpile of 1,50,000 rockets and missiles, including missiles.
