The Hezbollah militia in Lebanon early on Monday claimed responsibility for targeting a site south of the city of Haifa belonging to the Israeli military.
Hezbollah said it attacked the site ‘with a salvo of advanced rockets and a swarm of drones’ on Sunday night ‘in retaliation for the pure blood’ of Iranian leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in wide-ranging U.S.-Israeli strikes on Tehran on Saturday morning.
The Israeli military earlier reported that sirens sounded in several areas in northern Israel during the night after projectiles were fired from Lebanon.
It said it had started striking Hezbollah targets across Lebanon in response, adding that it would not allow Hezbollah to constitute a threat to the State of Israel and harm civilians.
Eyewitnesses told dpa that Beirut’s southern suburbs were hit by at least 10 strikes, rattling the entire city.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said in a statement on
‘We will not allow the country to be dragged into new adventures, and we will take all necessary measures to stop the perpetrators and protect the Lebanese people’.
Following the recent U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon pledged its solidarity with Tehran.
Hezbollah is supported by Iran and is considered one of the strongest non-state actors in the world.
Even after the recent war with Israel, in which the militia was severely weakened, it is said to still have considerable military capabilities.
Israel was quick to respond with air strikes in southern Beirut. Local news outlets also reported Israeli attacks in several villages in south Lebanon, as well as the Bekaa Valley in the east of the country.
The Israeli military said it was ‘vigorously attacking Hezbollah’ throughout Lebanon.
‘The [Israeli military] will act against Hezbollah’s decision to join the campaign, and will not allow the organisation to pose a threat to [Israel] and harm the residents of the north,” it said.
‘The Hezbollah terror organisation is destroying the state of Lebanon. Responsibility for the escalation lies with it, and the [Israeli military] will respond forcefully to this harm’.
The Israeli military later said that it targeted ‘senior’ Hezbollah members in the Beirut area and a ‘key’ figure in south Lebanon, without providing details.
Israel also called on people in more than 50 villages in south Lebanon and Bekaa the Valley, including the town of Bint Jbeil, to evacuate their homes and stay at least 1km (0.6 mile) from the buildings.
The warning for such a vast area appears to mirror the mass displacement orders Israel would issue during its genocidal war on Gaza.
The escalation could deepen the crisis in Lebanon, which has been suffering from economic and political woes for years.
