BEIRUT: On Monday, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for attacks on Israeli military targets in northern Israel, including a drone strike on a base and an assault on soldiers near the Lebanese border. This comes amid ongoing cross-border exchanges between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, which have intensified since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that triggered the Gaza conflict.
Tensions have escalated significantly following an Israeli strike last month on Beirut’s southern suburbs that killed Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander, just hours before another attack in Tehran resulted in the death of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh. Both Iran and Hezbollah have vowed retaliation.
Hezbollah announced it launched a coordinated drone attack on two Israeli military positions: a barracks near the border and a base near Acre, roughly 15 kilometers (10 miles) from the frontier. This action was described as retaliation for an Israeli attack and assassination in the Tyre region of southern Lebanon, where a Hezbollah fighter was killed on Saturday.
The Israeli military reported that its aircraft had “eliminated” a Hezbollah operative in Tyre, identifying him as a commander in the group’s elite Radwan force.
In addition to the drone strikes, Hezbollah claimed it engaged a group of Israeli soldiers near the border with rocket and artillery fire, forcing them to retreat. The group also reported a rocket and artillery attack on another Israeli barracks in response to what it termed “Israeli enemy attacks.”
The ongoing cross-border violence has resulted in approximately 582 deaths in Lebanon, including at least 128 civilians, according to AFP. On the Israeli side, including the Golan Heights, 22 soldiers and 26 civilians have been reported killed, based on army figures.
