Hezbollah drones swarm northern Israeli city

There was property damage but no injuries as terror group began launching its rockets and UAVs again after a three-day lull.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets and UAVs at the northern town of Metulla Wednesday morning, in retaliation, it said, for IDF airstrikes against its men the previous day in Lebanon.

Israel’s air force then hit several targets in Lebanon in retaliation.

Hezbollah said two men were killed, one of whom was one of its operatives. As of this writing, the IDF has yet to announce the results of its airstrikes.

According to Metulla Mayor David Azulay, three Hezbollah drones had exploded in the town, damaging cars but causing no injuries.

Metulla, along with all other Israeli border communities, was evacuated eight months ago, as the Iranian proxy began firing what has become more than 8,000 projectiles at Israel since Hamas’ October 7 invasion and vicious massacre of 1,200 people that sparked the ongoing war.

The Upper Galilee Regional Council reported that a fire broke out in the Metulla sector after a hit was detected there.

The IDF acknowledged that a UAV had successfully crossed into Israel from Lebanon, “falling in Metulla.”

“Earlier,” the army added, “a suspicious target was shot down in Sde Eliezer” in the Hula Valley.

Sde Eliezer is almost 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) south of Israel’s northern-most border town.

On Tuesday, Hezbollah had released a video taken by its surveillance drone of facilities in Haifa, including its port and sensitive installations, showing off how far its UAVs can penetrate into Israel.

This set off alarm bells for Haifa Mayor Yohan Yahav, who called on the government to “introduce a massive defense system” for his city and “work to find a military solution to the threats the region is facing.”

The launches followed three days of quiet in the north, perhaps because the Shiite terrorist organization was celebrating part of the four-day Eid al-Adha holiday, which ended Wednesday.

Special U.S. envoy to the Middle East Amos Hochstein had also been in Beirut on Tuesday, meeting with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, and the head of the Lebanese army.

He called for an “urgent” de-escalation of Hezbollah’s hostile activities, which have risen sharply over recent days and weeks, with hundreds of rockets and dozens of UAVs launched against Israeli military and civilian areas.

The IDF announced Tuesday that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved and validated,” and the political echelon is signaling that it may happen soon.

The government is well aware that some 80,000 northerners who have been living in hotels and other venues since the start of the war are growing more and more angry that their lives have been put on hold, and fearful about their livelihoods being destroyed and their children’s education damaged, perhaps beyond repair.

Amos HochsteinHezbollah rocketsIDF airstrikesIsrael-Lebanon borderMetulla