Hezbollah launches drones at Israeli military, amidst Gaza war
GALILEE
Hezbollah launched a squadron of drones on Monday at the Israeli military's Galilee formation's headquarters, marking an escalation in the ongoing cross-border conflict.
The hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel have been occurring concurrently with the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, causing concerns of a larger conflict brewing at the Israeli-Lebanese border. Hezbollah also fired dozens of Katyusha rockets at Israeli targets in the occupied Golan Heights. Meanwhile, the Israeli military intercepted a drone from Lebanon carrying explosives and two others fell in northern Israel.
The continuous rocket and drone launches since Sunday have sparked massive wildfires in northern Israel. In response, the Israeli military struck Hezbollah compounds and one operative. Hezbollah claims these actions were in retaliation to an alleged Israeli assassination in Zrariyeh, where a Hezbollah member was reportedly killed by an Israeli drone strike.
On the same day, Hezbollah launched drones toward Liman in northern Israel and a drone fell in the Israeli coastal city of Nahariya, causing a fire but no injuries, as reported by Israel's military and local media.
The Lebanese southern border has seen increased hostilities recently, with both the Israeli military and Hezbollah intensifying their attacks beyond the usual border strip. On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed two civilian men from the town of Houla. They were buried on Monday in their hometown.
In a related development, Israeli warplanes flew low over Beirut on Monday. Despite some in the Israeli government opposing the new US-backed ceasefire proposal, the U.S. State Department is urging acceptance, emphasizing it is an Israeli government proposal.
U.S. national security spokesman John Kirby suggested the next move is up to Hamas, despite mixed signals from the Israeli government. The Israeli army announced the deaths of four more Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip, identified as Haim Perry, Yoram Metzger, Amiram Cooper and Nadav Popplewell. Last month, a Hamas spokesman announced the death of Nadav Popplewell, a 51-year-old Israeli-British citizen, in an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip.