Hezbollah launched a large-scale rocket attack on Israel early Sunday morning, firing hundreds of rockets in response to the killing of a top commander in Beirut last month, according to the Iran-backed group. The Israeli government convened an emergency cabinet meeting to prepare a response, as reported by Reuters.
Israeli aircraft struck targets in Lebanon just before the attack, with military sources indicating that Hezbollah was preparing to open fire. “The IDF identified Hezbollah militants preparing to launch rockets and shells into Israeli territory. In response, the Israeli Defense Forces are striking terrorist targets in Lebanon,” the IDF stated.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the cabinet convened at 7 a.m. following the attacks. Flights to and from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv were suspended, and the defense minister declared a state of emergency.
Air raid sirens blared across northern Israel, and multiple explosions were heard in several areas as Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted rockets fired from southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah claimed responsibility for strikes on 11 Israeli military positions, launching over 320 rockets and sending drones into northern Israel. The Israeli emergency service Magen David Adom reported being on high alert nationwide.
Tensions have escalated since last month’s rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which killed 12 young people. Israel responded by killing a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut, further heightening the risk of a broader conflict.
The Israeli army announced that new civil defense instructions would be issued soon and warned civilians in southern Lebanon to avoid areas where Hezbollah operates.
These attacks coincided with negotiations in Cairo aimed at securing a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli and foreign hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Hezbollah had initially fired rockets into Israel following Hamas’s attack on October 7. Since then, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged fire several times, carefully avoiding a major escalation as the war rages in Gaza.
The fragile balance appeared to shift after the Golan Heights attack, for which Hezbollah denied responsibility, and the subsequent killing of Fouad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander, in Beirut.
Shukr’s death in an airstrike was followed by the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, leading Iran to vow retaliation against Israel.
