Hezbollah is still reeling after multiple explosive pager and walkie-talkie attacks earlier this week killed more than three dozen across Lebanon and Syria, with leader Hassan Nasrallah promising retaliation. Exactly when and what form this will take is anyone’s guess, but the ongoing tit-for-tat strikes continued Thursday, with anti-tank rockets fired into northern Israel.
Hezbollah reported firing at Israeli troops in the Ramim Ridge area. The strikes wounded at least eight people in the area, though their identities are not clear. Officials say two were seriously-to-moderately wounded, and the rest lightly so. Later reports said that two Israeli soldiers were killed in the strikes.
Rocket fire and Israeli airstrikes against southern Lebanon have increased in recent weeks, with attacks happening on a near-daily basis. New Israeli airstrikes were reported in southern Lebanon shortly after the rocket strikes, though no casualties were yet reported.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said he believes that the war is entering a “new phase,” one directed at the North, after the hacker attacks on Hezbollah pagers. Gallant is reportedly in a tenuous position, with Prime Minister Netanyahu angry that he is insufficiently eager to start a ground invasion of Lebanon.
The Israeli military reported that today’s airstrikes were being conducted to degrade Hezbollah’s capabilities and infrastructure. It’s not clear exactly what was targeted, but that’s not uncommon in the Israeli narrative about attacks on southern Lebanon.
The international community continues to work to calm tensions between Israel and Hezbollah and prevent full-scale war. But any likely deal must address the ongoing Gaza war, which is fanning the flames of anger throughout the region.
