Dozens of rockets were fired from southern Lebanon into northern Israel on Wednesday after Hezbollah confirmed the death of one of its senior commanders in ongoing clashes with the Israeli army, The Guardian reports.
An Israeli airstrike on the village of Jouya in southern Lebanon late Tuesday night killed three Hezbollah fighters as well as Taleb Abdullah, the most senior commander killed since fighting began eight months ago.
On Wednesday, militants linked to Iran fired a barrage of 50 rockets into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and then another 90 into northern Israel, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said. Some were intercepted by Israeli air defence systems, but the projectiles caused fires in some areas due to the summer heat.
Hezbollah said it struck Israeli military factories and bases in Ein Zeitim and Ami’ad, as well as the Israeli air surveillance station in Merona, firing dozens of rockets, according to its statements.
Second front against Israel
The Shiite group opened a second front against Israel a day after Hamas launched an attack from the Gaza Strip on October 7, firing rockets and mortars at villages and farms near the UN-controlled Blue Line separating the two countries. The war of attrition has steadily escalated, with Israeli politicians and generals in recent weeks signalling readiness for full-scale conflict.
Abdullah, the Hezbollah commander killed on Tuesday, was in charge of the central region of the southern border strip and was senior to Wissam al-Tawil, another senior Hezbollah commander killed in an Israeli strike in January, Lebanese sources told Reuters. His funeral, which is likely to be well attended, is scheduled for Wednesday.
The IDF confirmed it had killed Abdullah and said Israeli jets shot down several rocket launchers in southern Lebanon on Wednesday after shells were fired towards northern Israel.
Death toll is rising
Tens of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes on both sides of the Blue Line since October and it is unclear when they will be able to return. The shootings have killed 18 Israeli soldiers and 10 civilians, as well as 71 Lebanese and about 500 Hezbollah members – more fighters than it lost in the last major war with Israel in 2006.
Hezbollah has said it is not seeking an all-out war with Israel, while steadily increasing the scale and intensity of its attacks. Earlier this month, it fired a squadron of drones at Israel rather than individual launches.
The US and France have been engaged in intense talks aimed at defusing tensions on the border, but the possibility of escalation seems increasingly likely. While Israeli generals want to focus on the war in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week threatened an “extremely powerful” response to Hezbollah attacks. Israel also raised the cap on the number of reservists it can call up to the army by 50,000, to 350,000, close to the number called up at the start of the Gaza war.
