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Escalating Conflict: Israeli Forces and Hezbollah Exchange Strikes
As tensions escalate between the Israeli military and Hezbollah in Lebanon, Israeli police reported 19 injuries from a missile attack on the town of Tira in central Israel. Hezbollah announced the launch of missiles targeting the Galilout base, associated with military intelligence, near Tel Aviv. The Israeli Air Force reported pursuing several drones that infiltrated its airspace from Lebanon, while the Israeli army confirmed the identification of 15 missile launches from southern Lebanon, alongside a drone swarm that took off from Lebanese territory, with three drones exploding within Israel.
In an official statement, the Israeli army confirmed that northern areas of the country came under bombardment from newly launched rockets from Lebanon. The statement indicated that the military observed approximately 15 rockets being fired in two waves, targeting several regions in Upper Galilee and Haifa Bay, prompting air raid alerts due to the missile threat. The statement also confirmed the interception of some projectiles, while others fell in uninhabited areas. The Israeli Home Front reported that sirens continued to sound for 40 minutes, indicating the completion of drone tracking operations.
Meanwhile, Israeli media reported that alerts remained active in Haifa, Nahariya, Akko, and towns in the Galilee region. A correspondent from Al Arabiya and Al Hadath noted attempts to target the Ramat David base in Haifa, accompanied by intercepting missiles. Furthermore, our correspondent reported that a drone struck a factory in Nahariya, located in northern Israel.
Earlier, Israeli ambulance services reported significant damage to a residential building following the attack in Tira. The Israeli army asserted that three rockets crossed into Israel from Lebanon, with its air defense systems successfully intercepting some of them.
Tira, which has a predominantly Arab population, is located approximately 25 kilometers northeast of Tel Aviv, near the border with the West Bank.
Before this, the Israeli army activated sirens in central Israel after detecting three missile launches from Lebanese territory, all successfully intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system. Our correspondent confirmed that missile shrapnel fell in the town of Tira. Public ambulance services and local media reported injuries ranging from mild to moderate, with two individuals experiencing symptoms of stress.
Israel maintains that it aims to neutralize Hezbollah in border areas to facilitate the return of approximately 60,000 residents from the north to their homes, following their displacement due to the ongoing exchanges of fire with Hezbollah. This escalation follows the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip after an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023.
