170 Rockets Fired at Northern Israel; Hezbollah Lebanon: Will Avenge Death of Its Commander

On Wednesday, June 13, Hezbollah Lebanon fired 170 rockets towards Israel, threatening to escalate its attacks in retaliation for an Israeli strike that resulted in the death of a senior field commander of the group. According to Reuters, this threat comes amid increasing clashes along the Lebanon-Israel border. In this context, the Israeli army stated on its Telegram channel that no damage had been reported from these incidents and added that firefighting and rescue services were working to extinguish fires caused by the rocket launches. Israel and Hezbollah, a group supported by the Islamic Republic, have been engaged since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war, another group backed by Tehran, in Gaza last October, raising concerns that their conflict could intensify significantly. Israel and three security sources in Lebanon reported that following an Israeli attack late on Tuesday, June 12, on the village of Jouiyeh in southern Lebanon, three Hezbollah militants and a senior field commander named Sami Taleb Abdullah, known as Abu Taleb, were killed. One of these sources stated that Abu Taleb was the highest-ranking Hezbollah commander killed during these eight months of conflict. The Israeli army also confirmed on Wednesday that he and three other Hezbollah forces were killed in an attack on a command and control center. The Israeli army wrote on its Telegram channel: 'A Hezbollah command and control center in the Jouiyeh area of southern Lebanon, used for directing recent terrorist attacks against Israeli territory from southeastern Lebanon, was attacked by the Israeli Air Force.' The Israeli army's statement added that 'as part of this attack, Sami Taleb Abdullah, commander of the Nasr unit in the terrorist organization Hezbollah, was eliminated. Sami Taleb Abdullah was one of the senior commanders of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. This terrorist had designed, advanced, and carried out numerous terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians for years. In this attack, three other Hezbollah terrorist elements were also eliminated.' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had threatened Lebanon with 'harsh action' during a visit to northern areas of the country on June 6. According to the i24 news site, Mr. Netanyahu stated: 'Anyone who thinks they can harm us while we watch with our arms crossed is making a big mistake. We are prepared for harsh action in the north and will establish security in the north.' Thousands of residents in northern Israel have been forced to leave their homes due to border clashes between Hezbollah Lebanon and the Israeli army.