News
Rocket fire from Lebanon strikes northern Israel this morning
A rocket was fired early this morning from southern Lebanon into northern Israel. It is the first incident of unrest on Israel’s northern border since Operation Protective Edge was launched earlier this week to quell rocket fire from Gaza into southern and central Israel.
The rocket from Lebanon, apparently a Katyusha, is reported to have landed in the Galilee panhandle. A military spokesperson told AFP “One projectile hit an open space near Kfar Yuval, between Metula and Kiryat Shmona,” two towns close to the Lebanese border. No injuries or damage were reported. AP says that Israeli forces responded by firing a dozen artillery shells at the source of fire. In addition, United Nations peacekeepers and Lebanese troops were reportedly searching the area from which the rocket was fired.
Southern Lebanon is dominated by Hezbollah, which has launched numerous attacks on Israel from the area, most notably in 2006 which precipitated the month-long Second Lebanon War. Hezbollah is known to possess an extensive arsenal of short and long-range rockets. However, Maj.-Gen. (res). Amos Gilad, director of Political-Security Affairs at Israel’s Defence Ministry told Channel Two that a small radical group and not Hezbollah was responsible for the attack this morning. IDF spokesperson Peter Lerner told AP that it was unclear whether the rocket attack was “symbolic or something more substantial.”
The incident comes as Israel enters day four of Operation Protective Edge, during which around 550 rockets have been fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, mainly by Hamas, since the operation commenced. Israel has focused its efforts on air strikes on specific targets in Gaza including long-range rocket launchers, Hamas leadership facilities, terror and smuggling tunnels. This morning’s rocket fire from Lebanon though underscores the multiple military and security challenges faced by Israel. In recent months, Israel has also been hit by periodic mortar and gunfire from Syria, which in June was responsible for killing a 14-year-old Israeli boy.