Photo: Depositphotos
28 March, Israel – Lebanon
In recent hours, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have carried out a series of targeted strikes against the positions of the Hezbollah terrorist group in southern Lebanon. Headquarters, military infrastructure, missile launchers, and militants were hit. According to the IDF press service, these strikes were a response to the morning shelling of northern Israel from Lebanon.
Among the most high-profile operations was an attack in the Dahiya neighbourhood in southern Beirut, where a drone storage infrastructure used by the Hezbollah air wing was destroyed. According to the IDF, the terrorists deliberately placed this facility in a densely populated civilian area, using local residents as human shields. Before the attack, the Israeli army sent a warning to residents calling for evacuation.
“This morning’s shelling of the Upper Galilee is a flagrant violation of the agreements between Israel and Lebanon and a direct threat to our citizens. The State of Lebanon is responsible for upholding the ceasefire,” the IDF press service said.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz commented on the operation in Dahiya as a tough response to provocations:
“In response to any attempt to harm the people of Galilee, the roofs of Dahiya will shake. We have promised peace to the citizens of Galilee, and so it will be.”
Addressing the Lebanese army, he added: “If you do not enforce the ceasefire, we will enforce it ourselves.”
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, who is currently on a visit to France, condemned the IDF’s actions. In a statement, he called the attacks in Dahiyeh a violation of the ceasefire agreement brokered by France and the United States.
“The international community must force Israel to abide by this treaty, as Lebanon demands,” Aoun said.
He also questioned Hezbollah’s involvement in the rocket attacks on Israel: “There are reasons to believe that other forces interested in destabilising the region are responsible for this. The investigation will find out.”
This was reported by Newsru.
Amid the escalation, Hezbollah cancelled the events planned for today on the occasion of Iran’s Al-Quds Day. The group’s Secretary General Naim Qassem, who was scheduled to deliver a speech, cancelled his speech.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese Ministry of Health reported that Israeli air strikes in the south of the country killed three people.
The situation on the Lebanese-Israeli border remains tense, and the likelihood of further escalation is growing.
