Israel strikes Lebanon after claiming it intercepted rockets that Hezbollah denies firing

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Mar 22, 2025 3:22 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

Israeli artillery and airstrikes deed southbound Lebanon connected Saturday aft Israel said it had intercepted rockets fired from crossed the border, endangering a shaky truce that ended a year-long warfare betwixt Israel and the Lebanese equipped radical Hezbollah.

That struggle marked the deadliest spillover of the Gaza war, and a blistering Israeli violative aft months of cross-border exchanges of occurrence wiped retired Hezbollah's apical commanders, galore of its fighters and overmuch of its arsenal.

Hezbollah denied work for Saturday's strikes, saying it had "no link" to the rocket launches and that it remained committed to the ceasefire. No radical claimed work for the attack.

An Israeli authoritative said the individuality of the radical that fired the rockets had not been confirmed. Six rockets were fired, the authoritative said, 3 of which crossed into Israel and were intercepted.

Saturday's speech was the archetypal since Israel successful effect abandoned a abstracted ceasefire successful Gaza with Palestinian militant radical Hamas, an state of Hezbollah, some backed by Israel's arch-foe, Iran.

Later successful the day, the Israeli subject announced a 2nd circular of strikes connected what it said were Hezbollah targets.

"We expect Lebanon to instrumentality attraction of its portion of the agreement," Ophir Falk, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's overseas argumentation adviser, told Reuters.

"The [Israel Defence Forces] will bash immoderate it takes to enforce the ceasefire and to marque definite that our civilians tin get backmost location safely and securely," Falk said.

Israel's subject said aboriginal connected Saturday it had intercepted 3 rockets launched from a Lebanese territory astir six kilometres northbound of the borderline toward the Israeli borderline municipality of Metula, the 2nd cross-border motorboat since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire successful November ended fighting.

In retaliation, Netanyahu ordered the subject to "act forcefully against dozens of panic targets successful Lebanon."

Israel's subject said it had struck dozens of Hezbollah rocket launchers and a bid centre from which the group's militants had been operating in confederate Lebanon.

Lebanon's authorities quality bureau reported Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages successful the country's south, including borderline towns and hilltops about eight kilometres wrong Lebanese territory.

Two radical were killed and 8 wounded by Israeli airstrikes successful the southbound adjacent the border, the authorities quality bureau NNA said, quoting Lebanon's Health Ministry.

There were nary reports of casualties successful Israel.

'Serious consequences for the region'

Under the November ceasefire deal, Hezbollah was to person nary weapons successful confederate Lebanon, Israeli crushed troops were to retreat and Lebanese service troops were to deploy into the area.

The statement specifies that Lebanon's authorities is liable for dismantling each subject infrastructure successful confederate Lebanon and confiscating each unauthorized arms.

WATCH | Lebanese look to rebuild successful Nabatiyeh:

President Joseph Aoun ordered the Lebanese service to unafraid "any violation" that could endanger stableness successful Lebanon. The service said it had recovered and dismantled 3 "primitive rocket launchers" successful the south.

Netanyahu said Israel was holding Lebanon's authorities liable for "everything taking spot wrong its territory" and that Israel would not let immoderate harm to its citizens and sovereignty.

The United Nations peacekeeping unit successful Lebanon said it was alarmed by the "volatile" concern and that immoderate further escalation could person "serious consequences for the region."

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam warned of a renewal of subject operations successful the southbound of Lebanon, adding: "All information and subject measures indispensable beryllium taken to amusement that Lebanon decides connected matters of warfare and peace."

The ceasefire ended Israel's aggravated bombardment and crushed operations successful Lebanon and Hezbollah's regular rocket barrages into Israel. Each broadside has accused the different of failing to instrumentality the woody successful full.

Israel says Hezbollah inactive has subject infrastructure successful the south. Lebanon and Hezbollah accidental Israel is occupying Lebanese onshore by continuing to transportation retired immoderate airstrikes and keeping its troops astatine 5 hilltop positions adjacent the frontier.

Child among those killed by Israeli forces successful Gaza

In Gaza, wellness authorities said 5 Palestinians had been killed by Israeli fire, including a child, successful incidents successful Beit Lahiya and Gaza City successful the northbound of the enclave.

The Israeli subject said a fig of militants successful a conveyance were identified approaching its troops successful bluish Gaza who "posed a menace to them" and the subject struck them.

An Israeli airstrike connected the metropolis of Rafah, which abuts Gaza's confederate borderline with Egypt, killed 2 Palestinians, Gazan medics said. Israel's subject did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.