The United States said Thursday evening that Israel had the right to defend itself after it was bombarded with rockets from Lebanon and Gaza.
“We condemn the rocket fire from Lebanon and Gaza,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
“Our commitment to Israel’s security is unwavering. We recognize Israel’s legitimate right to defend itself against all forms of aggression.
He spoke as Israel was widely expected to respond forcefully to the attack from the north, the worst since the second Lebanon war in 2006. The Israeli military said Hamas was behind the rocket fire from both Gaza and Lebanon, while it stressed the Lebanese state. Responsible for attacks from its territory. And such an attack was unlikely to have been carried out without at least tacit approval from the Hezbollah terror group, which controls much of south Lebanon.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant were holding marathon consultations with top defense officials on Thursday evening, and the high-level security cabinet was due to convene at 8:30 p.m. to decide on the country’s next steps.
UN Interim Force in Lebanon calls for restraint after rocket fire.
“The current situation is extremely serious. UNIFIL urges restraint and refrains from escalating further.’
A photo taken on August 5, 2021, shows vehicles of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) patrolling the Sahl al-Khiyyam (Khiyyyam plain) near the border with Israel. (Mahmoud Zayat/AFP)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the barrage of rockets from Lebanon, his spokesman said, “calling on all actors to exercise maximum restraint.”
The State Department was on Thursday instructing its missions around the world to make clear to the international community that Israel would respond to the rocket barrage from Lebanon.
The embassies were to make it clear to their host countries that Jerusalem expects a clear condemnation of attacks against the country.
The army said dozens of rockets were fired from southern Lebanon on Thursday afternoon, 25 of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system over northern Israel. At least three people were injured.
The Israel Defense Forces said 34 rockets were fired towards the border with five landing inside Israel, and most of the rest were downed by Iron Dome. The impact sites of four others were not yet clear.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, and a Hezbollah source told the Al-Arabiya network that it was not behind the rocket fire, apparently blaming Palestinian groups based in the area. Lebanese security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, said the rockets were fired from the area of a Palestinian refugee camp.
The salvo also came hours after Hezbollah said it would support “all measures” the Palestinian group could take against Israel following clashes at the Al-Aqsa mosque, a flashpoint on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
It also came a day after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Beirut on what Hamas sources called a “private visit”. Media reports said he was meeting with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad viewed the rockets from Lebanon as “a heroic campaign against Israeli crimes at the Al-Aqsa Mosque”.
Israeli security at the site of a rocket fired from Lebanon at a village in northern Israel on April 6, 2023. (Mane Margolin/Flash90)
The incoming rocket sirens first sounded in the towns of Betzet and Shlomi in the western Galilee, close to the Lebanese border. The Israel Defense Forces said a rocket was identified and intercepted by Iron Dome. Soon after, sirens sounded in other towns in the area.
Footage circulating online shows traces of smoke billowing from Iron Dome interceptor missiles.
The Magen David Adom rescue service said a man was lightly wounded by shrapnel and a woman was injured while running to a bomb shelter. The Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya said it was treating two people with shrapnel injuries, including one of the patients brought in by the MDA.
The hospital said a 26-year-old man from Yanuh Jat suffered minor injuries after being hit by shrapnel while riding a motorcycle near Shlomi. The second person, a 19-year-old youth from Fasuta, was hit by shrapnel while driving in the village. The condition of both is stable, the hospital said.
The rockets damaged many buildings and vehicles and started fires in many places.
Several towns and cities in the north said they were opening public bomb shelters and that hospitals were in an emergency state.
Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said the attack was deliberately launched as Israelis celebrated Passover and said Israel would “take all necessary measures to protect our country and people.” He also called on the international community to “issue a clear statement against those responsible”.
The suspected rocket attack comes as tensions escalate following days of rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip, along with clashes at Al-Aqsa, as well as a suspected Iranian drone launch from Syria earlier in the week.
After those events, Hezbollah suggested that it too might enter the fray.
A Hezbollah supporter holds a picture of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, and slain Iran’s Quds Force General Qasim Suleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike in Baghdad, left, Hezbollah Martyrs’ Day, Lebanon, Friday during a rally. November 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussain)
“Hezbollah strongly condemns the attack by the Israeli occupation forces against the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and its attacks on loyalists,” Hezbollah said in a statement.
The group said, “Hezbollah declares its full solidarity with the Palestinian people and resistance groups, and pledges to do all it can to protect worshipers and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and to prevent the enemy from continuing its attacks.” Will stand by them in measures.” Said.
Global concern has grown after Israeli police and Palestinians clashed inside Islam’s third holiest site, followed by rocket and airstrikes on militants in Gaza, sparking fears of an escalation Was.
The fighting raised fears of a wider confrontation. Similar clashes two years ago turned into a bloody 11-day war between Israel and Hamas. Hezbollah’s warning raised fears of a more widespread conflict.
Emmanuel Fabian and agencies contributed to this report.
