Israel Launches Airstrikes into Lebanon, Hezbollah Retaliates with Rocket Fire
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Israel's military conducted airstrikes deep into Lebanese territory, targeting Hezbollah positions north of Beirut, leading to escalating exchanges between the two sides.
The Israel regime's military announced several air operations in Lebanon on Monday, stating that warplanes had struck “sites used by Hezbollah” around the Bekaa Valley in the country’s northeast.
Three strikes hit the village of Buday, around 55km (35 miles) northeast of the capital, Beirut, targeting a Hezbollah truck convoy, unnamed Lebanese security sources told the Associated Press.
A Hezbollah official confirmed at least two fighters were killed in the strikes, and an Israeli munition had struck a food storage warehouse used for civilian purposes. Another Lebanese official added that a Lebanese Army regular was seriously wounded in the raid, along with the soldier’s injured son.
In response, the Lebanese resistance group fired 60 Katyusha rockets toward an Israeli army command center in the occupied Golan Heights.
The strikes on Buday followed the downing of an Israeli drone by a resistance surface-to-air missile, with the drone falling into Lebanese territory. Hezbollah identified the drone as an Israeli Elbit Hermes 450, used for surveillance and reconnaissance.
While cross-border clashes between Hezbollah and Israeli troops have occurred since the Gaza war began last year, Israeli operations have recently deepened into Lebanese territory. Hezbollah has stated it will cease attacks on Israel after a Gaza ceasefire is reached, with over 200 Hezbollah fighters reportedly killed in the recent flare-up.
Hezbollah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem vowed further retaliation, emphasizing the resistance group’s significant arsenal and stating, “If the Israelis go too far, we will retaliate more. All what we have used until now in the fighting is the minimum of what we own.”
