Updated 6 August 2021 at 23:11 IST
Lebanon's Hezbollah fires over 10 rockets on Israel amid 3-day cross-border conflict
Israel, in response to Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah, hit back with artillery. In the recent attacks, no casualties were reported.
The militant group Hezbollah fired more than ten rockets towards Israel on Friday. In retaliation, Israel hit back with artillery. According to Israel Defense Forces (IDF), most of the rockets fired from Lebanon were intercepted by the IDF Aerial Defence System (ADS). IDF spokesperson Amnon Shefer said that Israel retaliated after 19 rockets were launched from Lebanon. In the recent attacks, no casualties were reported. "We do not wish to escalate to a full war, yet of course we are very prepared for that," he said, reported AP.
Attacks come at a politically sensitive time in Israel and Lebanon
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett called a meeting with the country's top officials following the conflict. The attacks come at a politically sensitive time in Israel as the eight-party governing coalition tries to maintain peace on another border under a ceasefire that suspended an 11-day war with Gaza-based Hamas' militants.
The escalation also come at a delicate time in Lebanon, which is struggling with multiple crises, including financial meltdown, crushing the economy and political deadlock, which has left the country out of functional government for a year.
Hezbollah blamed Isreal for the action and claimed that their strikes were in response to Israeli airstrikes on Thursday, which Isreal said was a reply to attacks from southern Lebanon in the last few days.
Notably, it was the third day of cross-border conflict that looms a period of calm prevailing since 2006, when Isreal and the militant group fought a one-month war.
Taking action, the Lebanese Army said that it had arrested four people in connection with the rocket firing. They also confiscated the rocket launcher. It said that United Nations peacekeepers and Lebanese troops are taking all measures to maintain peace.
According to Isreal, Hezbollah possesses more than 130,000 rockets and missiles, and the group is trying to develop an arsenal of precision-guided missiles, AP reported. Isreal, on several occasions, has threatened to attack Lebanese borders, where it accused the group is hiding rockets.
Image Credit: Twitter@IsrealDefenceForces
Published By : Kamal Joshi
Published On: 6 August 2021 at 23:05 IST