Israel on early morning Sunday launched pre-emptive airstrikes against Hezbollah terrorist group after detecting imminent missile and rocket attacks from Lebanon.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) “identified the Hezbollah terrorist organization preparing to fire missiles and rockets toward Israeli territory. In response to these threats, the IDF is striking terror targets in Lebanon,” the military said in a press release early morning.
Around 100 Israeli fighter jets took part in the defensive strike, taking out thousands of Hezbollah rockets launchers. “In all, thousands of Hezbollah rocket launchers were struck simultaneously by some 100 IAF fighter jets in the preemptive attacks,” The Times of Israel reported.
Hezbollah appears to have launched a large-scale attack on Israel, firing hundreds of rockets during the early morning hours. The Israeli TV channel i24NEWS talked of a “[w]idespread Hezbollah assault launched against northern Israel.”
Between 05:30 and 06:15 a.m. local time “about 200 rockets were launched from Lebanon towards the North, and several falls were detected, according to Israeli media. Sirens sounded repeatedly across the North, reaching as South as Acre,” the Jerusalem Post reported.
Hezbollah claimed firing over 320 rockets, vowing to continue the assault, the Israeli news website YNET reported:
The terrorist organization Hezbollah published another announcement about rocket launches toward Israel, stating that “the first phase was successfully completed, we launched more than 320 rockets.”
“Israeli Air Force fighter jets are currently striking targets belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization that posed an imminent threat to the citizens of the State of Israel,” the IDF disclosed.
The Israeli military described the strikes in Lebanon was “a self-defense act to remove” an unfolding terrorist threat. ”We are operating in self defense from Hezbollah – and any other enemy that joins in their attacks against us- and we are ready to do everything we need to defend the people of Israel,״ the IDF said
The IDF warned that Hezbollah was planning to escalate the conflict and launch a large-scale attack on Israel.
“Hezbollah will soon fire rockets, and possibly missiles and UAVs, towards Israeli territory. We will shortly update the Home Front Command Defensive guidelines for those in Israel,” the IDF statement said. “From right next to the homes of Lebanese civilians in the South of Lebanon, we can see that Hezbollah is preparing to launch an extensive attack on Israel, while endangering the Lebanese civilians.”
Iran-backed Hezbollah admitted that was starting a large-scale terrorist attack on Israel, The Times of Israel reported:
Hezbollah says it has begun its response to the killing of the terror group’s military commander Fuad Shukr in an IDF strike last month.In a statement, Hezbollah says it launched several explosive drones at Israel, targeting military sites.The Saudi-owned Al Arabiya outlet reports that more than 100 rockets have also been launched at northern Israel from Lebanon so far.
Israel has reported declared a state of national emergency for next 48 hours. “Israel’s Defense Minister declares ‘special situation’ amid Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel,” the i24NEWS TV reported early Sunday morning.
Flight to the country’s main Ben Gurion Airport are being redirected. The Jerusalem Post reported that “there are no plans to close the airport. However, in case of prolonged attacks, the Silver Wings contingency plan will begin, and Ben-Gurion Airport’s operations will be relocated to Ramon Airport near Eilat.”
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