Hezbollah Fires 60 Rockets At Israel As ‘Initial Response’ To Killing Of Top Hamas Leader

Hezbollah in Lebanon launched more than 60 rockets towards an Israeli military installation on Saturday, claiming responsibility for the attack in reprisal to the assassination of Hamas’ deputy commander in Beirut. “As part of the initial response to the crime of assassinating the great leader Sheikh Saleh al-Aruri… the Islamic resistance (Hezbollah) targeted the Meron air control base with 62 various types of missiles,” the statement issued by the Iran-backed group was quoted by AFP in its report. 

Since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, the Israel-Lebanon border has seen continuous exchanges of fire, mostly between Israeli forces and Hamas ally Hezbollah.

The assassination of Aruri on Tuesday in a Hezbollah stronghold in southern Beirut, which a US defence official said AFP was carried out by Israel, has fueled worries of further escalation.

The strike, the first on the Lebanese capital since hostilities began last year, has not been declared by Israel.

The Israeli military stated Saturday morning that it had identified about 40 rocket launches from Lebanese territory, and that its troops had targeted a cell responsible for part of the launches shortly after.

Air raid sirens sounded in towns and cities across northern Israel, and they were subsequently heard in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Later that day, Hezbollah claimed more strikes on Israeli troops and fortifications, to which the Israeli army responded.

According to an army statement, Israeli troops “struck a series of Hezbollah terror targets” in southern Lebanon, including “a launch post, military sites, and terrorist infrastructure.”

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned Israel in a speech Friday that the organisation will respond promptly “on the battlefield” to Aruri’s death.

According to an AFP tally, nearly three months of cross-border firing has killed 175 people in Lebanon, including 129 Hezbollah members but also more than 20 civilians, including three journalists.

According to Israeli authorities, nine troops and at least four civilians have been slain in northern Israel.