Sirens sounded in northern Israel, warning of incoming fire from Hezbollah.
Israel’s air force pounded targets in Lebanon as its soldiers clashed with Hezbollah militants in the southern part of the country, the military said on Sunday, with the Lebanese Health Ministry saying that at least a dozen people have been killed over the past 24 hours.
The Lebanese Red Cross said overnight that it was responding to a “major strike” in the southern city of Nabatieh, posting an image on social media that showed flames and rubble. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that nine people had been killed in an attack on the Keserwan district in the central part of the country on Saturday, with 15 others wounded. It did not give any details on the identities of the casualties or the nature of the attack.
On Sunday morning, the Israeli military said that its jets had hit around “200 Hezbollah targets deep in Lebanon and southern Lebanon” over the past day as part of its multipronged fight against the Iranian-backed militant group.
Hezbollah started firing on northern Israel in solidarity with its ally Hamas after the Oct. 7 attacks last year, setting off back-and-forth exchanges of fire that displaced communities on both sides of the border. Israel stepped up its bombardment in recent weeks before invading southern Lebanon with ground troops.
The expanding military operations — which have included targeting and killing Hezbollah’s leader and other senior commanders — have so far failed to stop the cross-border rocket fire. Sirens warning of incoming rocket fire sounded across northern Israel on Sunday.
Hezbollah released statements on social media on Sunday saying that it had launched a missile at the Israeli city of Haifa and also targeted Israeli forces in Lebanon. It was not possible to independently confirm the claims.
In recent days, Israeli forces in southern Lebanon have fired several times at a U.N. peacekeeping mission that operates along the border, wounding at least four peacekeepers. The attacks, reported by the mission, known as UNIFIL, have prompted international condemnation. Israel's military has said that Hezbollah militants operate near UNIFIL positions and encouraged the peacekeepers to pull back. The U.N. force has rejected Israel’s call for it to leave southern Lebanon during the invasion.
Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said he had spoken on Saturday with Israel’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, and “strongly emphasized the importance of ensuring the safety and security” of the peacekeepers as well as of Lebanese forces.
Mr. Gallant said in his own statement on Sunday that “the incident involving UNIFIL troops” was being investigated and that Israel’s military “will continue to take measures to avoid harm to UNIFIL troops and peacekeeping positions.”
Israel has invaded Lebanon four times. During its previous invasion in 2006 its forces, despite overwhelming military superiority, sustained substantial losses. Around a dozen Israeli troops have been killed during the current operation. On Sunday, the Israeli military said that two more soldiers had been severely wounded in combat.
Matthew Mpoke Bigg is a London-based reporter on the Live team at The Times, which covers breaking and developing news. More about Matthew Mpoke Bigg
Hiba Yazbek covers the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with a focus on Palestinian affairs and society in the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank and Israel. More about Hiba Yazbek
See more on: Israel-Hamas War News, Hamas, Hezbollah, Yoav Gallant
