Israel attacks Lebanon in response to rocket launch in most intense confrontation since ceasefire with Hezbollah

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Israeli artillery and airstrikes hit areas in south Lebanon late on Saturday.
The attack came after Israel said it had intercepted rockets fired from across the border.
Hezbollah denied responsibility for Saturday’s strikes, saying it had ‘no link’ to the rocket launches.

Israeli artillery and airstrikes hit south Lebanon overnight after Israel said it had intercepted rockets fired from across the border, killing at least eight people and .

Hezbollah denied responsibility for Saturday’s strikes, saying it had “no link” to the rocket launches and that it remained committed to the ceasefire. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

An Israeli official said the identity of the group that fired the rockets had not been confirmed. Six rockets were fired, the official said, three of which crossed into Israel and were intercepted.

Two waves of Israeli strikes killed three people in Bint Jbeil and Touline, as well as five in the port city of Tyre, all in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s state news agency, which cited health authorities.

The exchanges late on Saturday were the first since , an ally of Hezbollah, both backed by Israel’s arch-foe Iran.

Later in the day, the Israeli military announced a second round of strikes on what it said were Hezbollah targets.

“We expect Lebanon to take care of its part of the agreement,” Ophir Falk, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s foreign policy adviser, said.

Under the ceasefire, Hezbollah is supposed to pull its forces back north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres from the Israeli border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.

Israel is supposed to withdraw its forces across the UN-demarcated Blue Line, the de facto border, but has missed two deadlines to do so and continues to hold five positions it deems “strategic”.

Israel has carried out repeated air strikes during the ceasefire, targeting what it said were Hezbollah military sites that violated the agreement.

Israel’s military said earlier on Saturday it had intercepted three rockets launched from a Lebanese district about 6 km north of the border towards the Israeli border town of Metula, the second cross-border launch since the US-brokered ceasefire in November ended fighting.

In retaliation, Netanyahu ordered the military to “act forcefully against dozens of terror targets in Lebanon”.

Israel’s military said it had struck dozens of Hezbollah rocket launchers and a command centre from which the group’s militants had been operating, in southern Lebanon.

Lebanon’s state news agency reported Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages in the country’s south, including border towns and hilltops around eight km inside Lebanese territory.

There were no reports of casualties in Israel.

In Gaza, health authorities said five Palestinians had been killed by Israeli fire, including a child, in incidents in Beit Lahiya and Gaza City in the north of the enclave.

The Israeli military said a number of militants in a vehicle were identified approaching its troops in northern Gaza who “posed a threat to them” and the military struck them.

An Israeli airstrike on the city of Rafah, which abuts Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, killed two Palestinians, Gazan medics said. Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

UN alarmed by ‘volatile’ situation

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, said it was alarmed at the possible escalation of violence and urged all parties to avoid jeopardising the progress made, saying further escalation could have serious consequences for the region.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam warned of a renewal of military operations in the south of Lebanon, adding: “All security and military measures must be taken to show that Lebanon decides on matters of war and peace.”

The ceasefire ended Israel’s intense bombardment and ground operations in Lebanon and Hezbollah’s daily rocket barrages into Israel. Each side has accused the other of failing to implement the deal in full.

Israel says Hezbollah still has military infrastructure in the south. Lebanon and Hezbollah say Israel is occupying Lebanese land by continuing to carry out some airstrikes and keeping its troops at five hilltop positions near the frontier.