Israeli jets attack Lebanese town causing damage: Report
Israeli warplanes have conducted air strikes on several homes in the southern Lebanese town of Aita al-Shaab Sunday overnight through to Monday morning, according to the Lebanese state media. The attacks caused significant damage to properties, crops and residences, especially targeting power and water networks, the official National News Agency said.
The Israeli jets also targeted the vicinity of Khallet Warde, neighbouring Aita al-Shaab. The agency said that Israel’s reconnaissance aircraft have carried out flights over southern Lebanon’s Sidon, Naqoura, Chamaa, Majdal Zoun and Tayr Harfa regions.
Thai nationals wounded in attack from Lebanon: Israeli reports
Two Thai workers have been wounded by an antitank missile fired from Lebanon near the Margaliot Jewish settlement in northern Israel, medics quoted by the Israeli media say. The Magen David Adom ambulance service quoted by The Times of Israel said one of the men, in his 30s, is listed as in a moderate-to-serious condition while the other man, aged 29, is lightly hurt.
Earlier, Lebanese state media reported Israeli attacks on a border town overnight and in the morning as well as low-altitude flights by reconnaissance aircraft in several regions.
One dead, 7 injured in attack on northern Israel: State media
We are receiving updates on the reported attack from Lebanon on a Jewish settlement in northern Israel. One person has been killed and seven others injured when an antitank missile landed near the Margaliot Jewish settlement, according to the Israeli state media. Earlier Israeli reports said that two Thai workers were wounded in the attack.
Reporting the increased casualty toll, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation said two of the injured were in serious condition, four were moderate and one was lightly injured.
Lebanon’s Hula and Markaba towns bombed in apparent tit-for-tat attack by Israel
The southern Lebanese towns of Hula and Markaba have been targeted by phosphorus and smoke bombardment, according to the local media. The area overlooks the Hunin Valley and the Margaliot settlement in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel.
The attack appears to be in response to an earlier antitank missile attack on Israel’s Margaliot that killed at least one person and wounded several others, according to the Israeli media.
الطيران الحربي الإسرائيلي شنّ غارة جوية بالصواريخ استهدفت بلدة شيحين pic.twitter.com/K9lbbIYW35
— bintjbeil.org (@bintjbeilnews) March 4, 2024
Translation: Israeli warplanes launched an air strike with missiles targeting the town of Chihine.
Israeli army claims striking Hezbollah sites in southern Lebanon
The Israeli air forces have said that it struck targets in southern Lebanon, confirming the reports by the Lebanese media earlier, as the escalation that reportedly started overnight continues over the border. The Israeli army said that its fighter jets attacked two military sites of the Hezbollah group located in the town of Chihine and the village of Aita al-Shaab.
Earlier, both the Lebanese and Israeli media reported mutual cross-border attacks with the one on Israel’s Margaliot killing at least one person and injuring several others. Israel’s strikes are apparently a response to the reported deadly anti-tank missile attack from Lebanon.
Hezbollah claims hitting Israel’s ‘spy services’ in occupied Kfar Shuba hills
The Lebanese armed group has claimed to have hit Israel’s “spy services at the Ruweisat al-Alam site in the occupied Kfar Shuba hills with appropriate weapons”. Hezbollah said in a statement on Telegram that the attack came “in support of out steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip” at 3:20pm local time (13:20 GMT). A map was attached to the announcement with the target marked in a red circle.
What do we know about Hezbollah-Israel border hostilities?
- Since October 8, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged near-daily attacks across the Israel-Lebanon border. The rise in hostilities is reviving concerns that the war in Gaza threatens escalation across the region. The hostilities seem be expanding away from border areas in recent days with Israel conducting strikes almost 60km (37 miles) inside Lebanese territory.
- In one of the latest attacks, a Hezbollah anti-tank missile fired on Israel’s Margaliot settlement in Upper Galilee killed at least one person and wounded several, according to the Israeli media.
- Israel then proceeded to attack the southern Lebanese towns of Hula and Markaba by phosphorus and smoke bombardment.
- It is currently the largest escalation of the Hezbollah–Israel conflict to have occurred since the 2006 Lebanon War. Hezbollah has described its attacks as part of a campaign to support Palestinians under fire in the Gaza Strip, where more than 30,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed.
- In northern Israel, the ongoing conflict has forced 96,000 people to leave their homes while in Lebanon, more than 100,000 individuals have been displaced.
- Israel’s attacks on Lebanon have killed about 50 civilians and 200 Hezbollah fighters. Attacks by Hezbollah have killed a dozen or so Israeli soldiers and six civilians.
‘Limited war’ at Lebanon-Israel border would not be ‘containable’: US envoy
US Special Envoy Amos Hochstein has said after meeting Lebanon’s parliament speaker Nabih Berri in Beirut that “escalation of violence is in no one’s interest, and there is no such thing as a limited war”. “A temporary ceasefire is not enough. A limited war is not containable,” he added.
Hochstein is on a one-day visit to Lebanon as part of diplomatic efforts to end exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel that intensified since Israel began its war on Gaza. It has marked the worst conflict across Lebanon’s southern border since the 2006 war, raising fears of a bigger confrontation.
