Hezbollah's Rocket Attack on Northern Israel Leaves Five Dead

Israeli media reported on Thursday that Hezbollah's rocket fire at an agricultural area near the city of Metula on the Israel-Lebanon border resulted in five deaths and one injury. According to Channel 12 Israel, all the deceased were agricultural workers who were working in an apple orchard at the time of the attack. One of the deceased was an Israeli citizen, while the others were foreign nationals. The injured person, who sustained shrapnel wounds all over his body, has been transferred to the hospital. The Israeli army confirmed in a brief statement that two Hezbollah rockets hit Metula and that details of the incident are under investigation. According to the Times of Israel, the total number of civilian casualties from Hezbollah's attacks on northern Israel over the past year, including the five fatalities on Thursday, has reached 37. In a separate attack, Hezbollah targeted Carmiel and neighboring areas in Galilee with dozens of rockets, triggering warning sirens. The Israeli army stated that its air defense intercepted and destroyed some of Hezbollah's projectiles, while the remaining ones landed in uninhabited areas. For the second consecutive day, the Israeli army has instructed residents of Baalbek in eastern Lebanon to evacuate their homes before the commencement of airstrikes. Avichai Adraee, a spokesperson for the Israeli army, wrote in a message on social media platform X: 'You are in a war zone where the Israeli army intends to target Hezbollah's infrastructure, facilities, and equipment, and the aim is not to harm you.' He warned that 'staying in the red zone puts your life and your family's life at risk' and published a map marking most of Baalbek as a 'red zone.' The Lebanese Ministry of Health reported that at least eight people were killed in the Israeli airstrikes on Baalbek on Thursday. The Israeli army announced that one of the commanders of Hezbollah's anti-tank missile unit was killed in an airstrike. According to the Israeli army, Muhammad Khalil Aliyan was killed in an airstrike in the village of Burj Qalaouiyeh in southern Lebanon. The Israeli army reported that its fighter jets attacked Hezbollah's ammunition depots and command centers in the city of Qusayr, Syria, near the border with Lebanon. The Israeli army stated that the targets attacked on Thursday belonged to Hezbollah's Radwan unit and its armament unit. The Israeli army has indicated that Hezbollah's armament unit has recently begun stockpiling weapons belonging to the group in Syria. According to the Times of Israel, Thursday's attacks on Hezbollah positions in Syria were part of the Israeli army's efforts to prevent the transfer of weapons from the Islamic Republic to this proxy group in Lebanon. Hezbollah Lebanon unilaterally began its rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel the day after the terrorist attack on October 7, 2023. In response, Israel has conducted severe attacks against this group's positions in Lebanon and Syria, killing hundreds of members of this Iran-backed group, including its leader and senior military commanders such as Hassan Nasrallah, Foad Shukr, Ibrahim Aqil, and Hashem Safi al-Din. Simultaneously with heavy airstrikes on Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon, the southern suburbs of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley, Israel has deployed its ground forces to parts of southern Lebanon. Several countries, including the United States, Israel, Germany, Serbia, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, and Australia, have recognized Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. The identification of Hezbollah Lebanon as a terrorist organization means that there is no distinction between its political and military branches, and both branches of Hezbollah are recognized as terrorist entities. Israel: We will make sure that Naim Qassem soon joins 'Nasrallah's path.' Israel's request for residents in the Bekaa Valley to evacuate part of it. The deputy commander of Hezbollah's Radwan force was killed in an Israeli attack. Naim Qassem: Hezbollah will continue the war. Possible ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah; Biden's advisors meet with Netanyahu to create an agreement. UN peacekeeping forces in Lebanon: The rocket fire at the UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura was likely the work of Hezbollah.