Dozens of rockets and mortar shells were fired at northern Israel by Hezbollah on Tuesday from across the Lebanese border, targeting Israeli towns and cities from one end of the border to the other, including at Mount Dov.
The Iranian proxy has been carrying out multiple daily attacks on IDF soldiers and civilian communities since the start of the Oct. 7th war launched against Israel by Hamas in Gaza.
Hezbollah refrained from attacks in the north only during the seven-day temporary ceasefire in which Hamas released some hostages in exchange for freeing convicted Palestinian Authority terrorists from Israeli prisons.
“Hezbollah chose to open fire at the end of the operational pause,” IDF Chief of Staff LTC Herzi Halevi noted in a briefing Tuesday evening. “We identified this in advance and prepared for this.
“We are resolutely acting against anyone preparing, or attempting to harm the citizens of Israel, IDF soldiers or those that pose a threat to our territory,”he said.
“We are exacting a high price from Hezbollah, one that it is trying to hide, which they probably understand why.
“We are focused on Gaza, but together with this we are continuing operational activities aimed at achieving a better security reality in the north of Israel.
“The IDF, all its commanders and soldiers, is wholly engaged in achieving the war’s goals. Among them is creating a different security response that will allow the residents to return to their homes – both in the south and in the north,” Halevi added.
“The IDF is already working on this today, planning forward. We know that more forces will be required at the borders, more capabilities and an increased presence alongside the residents, in order to return safely, and that’s what we will do. We will be there with you, residents of northern and southern Israel.
“We – the soldiers of the IDF – will do everything, everything, to repair what has been damaged. For the murdered, this repair is too late,” Halevi acknowledged, but emphasized, “For the life and continuity of life in the State of Israel, it is essential. We will not stop until we complete the mission.”
