Israel launches airstrikes on Lebanon in response to rockets

PanARMENIAN.Net - Israel escalated its response to rocket attacks this week by launching airstrikes on Lebanon, the Israeli military has said, according to The Guardian.

The military said in a statement that jets struck the launch sites from which rockets had been fired over the previous day, as well as an additional target used to attack Israel in the past. Several militant groups operate in Lebanon but none claimed responsibility.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) alleged the state of Lebanon was responsible for the shelling and warned “against further attempts to harm Israeli civilians and Israel’s sovereignty”.

The overnight airstrikes were a marked escalation at a politically sensitive time. Israel’s new eight-party governing coalition is maintaining a fragile ceasefire that ended an 11-day war with Hamas’s militant rulers in Gaza in May. Several incidents leading up to this week’s rocket fire from Lebanon have focused attention on Israel’s northern border, and the US swiftly condemned the attacks on Israel.

The Hezbollah-owned al-Manar TV reported the strikes at about 2am, saying they hit an empty area in Mahmoudiya village in Marjayoun district.

Avichai Adraee, the Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesperson, said the Lebanese government was responsible for what happened on its territories and warned against more attacks on Israel from south Lebanon.

Three rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israeli territory on Wednesday and the army responded with sustained artillery fire, Israel’s military said. The announcement came after sirens sounded in northern Israel warning of a possible rocket attack. Two rockets landed inside Israeli territory, the army said.