Israeli Army Bombards Hezbollah Positions in Southern Lebanon Following Rocket Attacks

On Thursday, July 5, the Israeli army bombarded 'Hezbollah targets' in southern Lebanon for several hours. The attacks came after Hezbollah fired rockets and sent dozens of drones into northern Israel on the same day. Israeli media broadcast warnings of danger from rocket attacks and drone incursions into various areas in the north of the country for several hours during live programs. According to these media reports, at least two Israelis were injured in the attacks. Earlier, a Hezbollah source told Al Jazeera that the group had fired 'over 200 rockets' and dozens of drones towards Israel on Thursday. Tehran-aligned militants also launched about a hundred more rockets towards Israel on Wednesday, with Israel reporting that most of them landed in open areas and intercepted the rest. Meanwhile, the rockets landing in open areas caused fires in farms and forests, prompting Israeli firefighters, who were prepared for such eventualities, to respond to various locations. Hezbollah expanded its attacks on Israel following the death of Mohammad Naeem Nasr, known as 'Haj Abunaimah,' in a drone strike on Wednesday. In retaliation for the death of their commander, Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets at Israel. Mohammad Naeem Nasr was one of three main field commanders of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon in a unit known as 'Aziz,' and the Israeli army had identified him as the orchestrator of the group's rocket attacks over the past nine months against northern Israel. He was the third senior Hezbollah commander killed in recent field operations. Mohammad Naeem Nasr was killed in a drone strike on his moving vehicle on a road near the city of Tyre. Another group member was also killed alongside him. Prior to the death of this senior Hezbollah commander, the intensity of attacks between the group and Israel had somewhat decreased, which had been severe until two weeks prior. The previous escalation of attacks was also attributed to the death of another important Hezbollah commander. Concurrently with the Israeli Defense Minister's visit to Washington last week, the Associated Press reported that the U.S., Europe, and Arab countries in the region warned Hezbollah that if it did not cease its attacks on Israel, it should not expect the U.S. to deter Israeli leaders from a large-scale attack in Lebanon. The Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister have emphasized that they prefer a political solution to keep Hezbollah away from Israel's northern borders and ensure the safe return of tens of thousands of displaced Israelis from northern cities, but they are also prepared for any other possibility. Hezbollah, which began military attacks on northern Israel the day after the extremist group Hamas attacked Israeli territory to support this other Tehran ally, has conditioned the end of its operations on the cessation of the Gaza war. Over the past nine months, Hezbollah has confirmed that it has lost more than 360 members. Hezbollah's operations have also resulted in the deaths of about 200 other Lebanese, including around a hundred civilians. As the likelihood of a widespread war in Lebanon increases, internal criticisms on Lebanese television networks and from Lebanese politicians opposing Hezbollah have intensified. These critics in Lebanon emphasize that they do not want their country to suffer the same fate as Gaza. Israeli fighter jets have flown over Beirut in recent days, breaking the sound barrier as a warning.