Middle East Crisis Live: Hezbollah Retaliates With Rocket Barrage After Israel Launches Airstrikes In Lebanon
NewsWorldMiddle EastHezbollah fires over 300 drones and rockets after Israel conducts heavy airstrikes in southern Lebanon
Smoke and fire in Lebanon following Israeli airstrikes on Sunday (Reuters)
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Israel launched a series of nearly 40 airstrikes in southern Lebanon early on Sunday in what it described as a “preemptive attack” to prevent an imminent Hezbollah drone and rocket strike.
“The IDF is striking terror targets in Lebanon from which Hezbollah was planning to launch attacks on Israeli civilians,” Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, calling it a “self-defence act”. “We can see that Hezbollah is preparing to launch an extensive attack on Israel, while endangering the Lebanese civilians.”
Hezbollah, which had vowed retaliation for Israel’s assassination of one of its top commanders in Beirut last month, responded anyway, hitting military sites and Iron Dome platforms with over 320 drones and rockets.
The escalation came as mediated talks for a ceasefire in Gaza stalled and raised fears of a broader war in the region.
Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire almost daily since the Israel started an air and ground war in Gaza on October 7, displacing tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border and edging the region closer to a regional war.
1724566414Netanyahu: ‘Determined to do everything possible to defend our country’Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel would take all measures necessary to defend itself, after the Iranian-backed Hezbollah launched hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel in retaliation for the killing of a senior commander.
“We are determined to do everything possible to defend our country, to return the residents of the north safely to their homes and to continue to uphold a simple rule: Whoever harms us, we harm him,” he said in a statement.
File image: Benjamin Netanyahu while speaking at the state memorial for Ze’ev Jabotinsky, at Mount Herzl Military Cemetery in Jerusalem (AP)Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 07:13
1724565820One confirmed dead in Lebanon after Israeli strikesOne person has died after an Israeli airstrike hit a car in the southern Lebanese town of Khiam on Sunday, according to Lebanon’s state news agency and a security source.
The strike was part of broader Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah launched a missile barrage across the border in retaliation for the assassination of one of its top commanders in an Israeli strike last month.
Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 07:03
1724564165Israel does not seek ‘full-scale war’, says Israeli foreign minister“Israel does not seek a full-scale war but will act according to development on the ground,” Israel’s foreign minister Israel Katz has said, according to the Reuters news agency.
File image: Israel Katz, foreign minister to the United Nations during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council in March (REUTERS)Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 06:36
1724563805In photos: Hezbollah UAV intercepted by Israeli air force
This photo taken from a position in northern Israel shows a Hezbollah UAV intercepted by Israeli air forces over north Israel on Sunday (AFP via Getty Images)
Hezbollah said it had launched more than 320 rockets at Israel overnight, targeting a string of military positions (AFP via Getty Images)Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 06:30
1724563093Hezbollah says it fired over 320 rockets at Israel in a ‘successful’ attackHezbollah said it fired more than 320 Katyusha rockets at 11 Israeli military bases and barracks, including the Meron base and four sites in the occupied Golan Heights.
It targeted Israeli military bases to “facilitate the passage of drones” towards their desired targets deep inside Israel.
“The first phase has been completed with complete success,” the statement reads.
“This phase involved targeting zionist barracks and sites to facilitate the passage of attack drones towards their intended targets deep within the entity.”
“And the drones have passed as planned,” it said.
Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 06:18
1724561668Biden ‘closely monitoring’ events in Israel and LebanonIn the US, a spokesman for the National Security Council, Sean Savett, said president Joe Biden was “closely monitoring events in Israel and Lebanon.
“At his direction, senior US officials have been communicating continuously with their Israeli counterparts,” Savett said. “We will keep supporting Israel’s right to defend itself, and we will keep working for regional stability.”
In recent weeks, diplomats from the US and Europe have made numerous visits to Israel and Lebanon, trying to prevent the escalation from spiralling into a regional war that could draw in the US and Iran.
Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 05:54
1724561103Israel’s main international airport returns to operations after shutdownIsrael’s main international airport, Ben Gurion, was returning to normal operations early on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Israeli Airport Authority said in a statement.
“According to the assessment of the situation, Israel Airport is expected to return to operations … including takeoffs and landings,” the spokesperson said.
The airport was shut down temporarily amid the strikes between Israel and Hezbollah, during which time some planes were diverted to alternative airports, the spokesperson said.
Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 05:45
1724560802Israel launches heavy airstrikes on Lebanon, Hezbollah retaliates Israel launched intense airstrikes in southern Lebanon early Sunday, targeting Hezbollah in what it described as a pre-emptive strike to prevent a large-scale attack on Israeli civilians.
“In a self-defence act to remove these threats, the (Israeli military) is striking terror targets in Lebanon, from which Hezbollah was planning to launch their attacks on Israeli civilians,” Rear adm Daniel Hagari of the Israeli military said.
“We can see that Hezbollah is preparing to launch an extensive attack on Israel, while endangering the Lebanese civilians.”
Hezbollah, which had vowed retaliation for Israel’s assassination of a top commander last month, responded with a drone assault on Israel, targeting military sites and Iron Dome platforms.
The escalation has raised fears of a broader war in the region, potentially undermining cease-fire talks in Gaza.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defense minister Yoav Gallant are overseeing the operation from Tel Aviv, with Gallant declaring a “special situation on the home front.”
Both Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire almost daily since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, displacing tens of thousands on both sides and edging closer to all-out war.
A view shows smoke and fire on the Lebanese side of the border with Israel, as seen from Tyre, southern Lebanon (REUTERS)Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 05:40
1724560644Welcome to The Independent’s live blog with all the latest updates from the Middle East where Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged strikes. Stay tuned for the latest!
Stuti Mishra25 August 2024 05:37
