The Rockets were fired from Lebanon on Saturday for the first time in months, urging Israeli forces to return in a few hours at a site in southern Lebanon, said to be linked to the militant group Hezbollah.
At least six people were killed and others were injured in the Israeli bombing, according to a statement from Lebanon's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish civilians and combatants. Israeli forces said they launched a second round of attack on Saturday night.
The attack was the latest example of the spillover of a new Israeli attack in Gaza in the Middle East. They also risk further disrupting the revival of tens of thousands of displaced people on either side of the border, which fled the battle between Israel and Hezbollah for more than a year. Israeli forces said they fired three rockets from Lebanon without reporting the casualties. Volleys were the first rocket attack since Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire mediated by the US and France late last year.
Hezbollah denied involvement in the rocket fire after resuming Israeli attacks on Hamas, the Palestinian alliance of the Lebanese group this week. These Israeli attacks have already killed more than 600 Palestinians, according to health officials in Gaza.
After igniting the Gaza War after Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, allies of extremist groups in the Middle East began to attack Israel in solidarity. Last year, escalated into a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah, and Israel assassinated the Hezbollah leader and launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon, Hezbollah's base.
The truce took effect in late November and was held primarily. Under the conditions of a ceasefire, the Lebanese government is supposed to prevent armed groups like Hezbollah from attacking Israel from Lebanese territory.
It appeared that Lebanese leaders wanted to cut off a new escalation with Israel. The Israel-Hezbollah War killed around 4,000 people in Lebanon, and more than 1 million people fled their homes, according to national authorities. According to the United Nations, tens of thousands of people were still evacuated as of mid-March.
After the rocket fire on Saturday, Lebanese President Joseph Own denounced what he called “an attempt to return Lebanon to a cycle of violence.” He called on a committee accused of overseeing a ceasefire that includes representatives from the US and France to prevent violations that could threaten Lebanon.
Lebanese forces said on Saturday they found and dismantled rocket launchers in southern Lebanon. The National Army is a clear force with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia that has long wielded huge political and military influences in Lebanon.
“Military units continue to take necessary measures to control the situation in the South,” the Lebanese army said.
Israeli officials have expressed skepticism about whether Lebanese forces rely on challenges to prevent attacks. And it claims that Israel continues to attack Lebanon despite the truce and is cracking down on extremists who are violating the ceasefire.
The ceasefire originally stipulated a full withdrawal of Israel by late January, but Israeli forces still control five points within Lebanon's territory. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces will remain there indefinitely to protect Israeli towns near the Lebanese border.
The armistice requires that the Lebanese government security forces be the only armed entity in southern Lebanon, but the extent to which Hezbollah actually retracted its fighter jets and weapons is unknown.
The resumed strike in Gaza this week has led to attacks on Israel from at least one other Hamas Alley.
Yemeni Hooti militias – supported by Iran like Hamas and Hezbollah – have resumed ballistic missiles firing in Israel, and hundreds of thousands of Israelis rushed to send fortified bomb shelters. Israeli air defense systems intercepted missiles.
Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said they had put pressure on Hamas to release more of the dozens of Israeli and foreign hostages remaining in the Enclave. Hamas claims Israel is ripping its ceasefire contract.
Steve Witkov, the Trump administration's Middle East envoy, said Israel and Hamas are “talking again” to try to resolve the negotiations' impasse. He made his remarks in an extended interview with right-wing media personality Tucker Carlson on Friday.
The US is currently debating how to blame Hamas as part of Gaza's postwar reconciliation, Witkov added, “That's a big deal.”
“They need to be demilitarized. Then they can stay there a bit? They can get politically involved,” he said. “You can't have a terrorist organization that runs Gaza.”
Witkov said that by restarting the fight against Hamas, Netanyahu believed that he was moving forward “against public opinion” in Israel.
EUAN WARD Beirut, Lebanon, and Rawan Sheikh Ahmad From Haifa, Israel.
