IDF downs three rockets fired from Lebanon

It was the first rocket fire from Lebanon since a Nov. 27 ceasefire ended more than a year of war with Hezbollah.

By JNS

The Israeli Air Force intercepted three rockets that terrorists in Lebanon fired at the Galilee town of Metula on Saturday morning.

Three additional rockets fell short and did not cross into Israeli territory.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, and no changes to IDF Home Front Command directives for civilians.

The IDF responded with artillery fire toward the site of the launches and later struck dozens of Hezbollah terror assets in Southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese terrorist group issued a statement denying its involvement in the rocket fire.

Following the attack, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir conducted a situational assessment.

It was the first rocket fire from Lebanon since a Nov. 27 ceasefire ended more than a year of war with Hezbollah, which opened a front against Israel in support of Hamas the day after the Palestinian terrorist group’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.

“The rocket fire launched this morning toward the Galilee constitutes a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon and is a direct threat to the citizens of the State of Israel. The State of Lebanon bears responsibility for upholding the agreement,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said.

The mayor of Metula, David Azoulai, said that of the eight percent of the town’s residents who have returned since the November ceasefire, some left after this morning’s rocket attack.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office stated on Saturday that the “Government of Lebanon is the party responsible for everything taking place within its territory. Israel will not allow any harm to its citizens and its sovereignty—and will do everything in its power to ensure the safety of the citizens of Israel and the communities of the North.”

“We will not allow a reality of fire from Lebanon on Galilee communities. We have promised security and that is exactly what will happen,” Defense Minister Israel Katz followed in a statement.

“The fate of Metula is the same as Beirut,” he added. “The Lebanese government bears responsibility for fire from its territory.”

Meanwhile, the Lebanese Armed Forces said on X that it carried out a “search and inspection operation, which resulted in the discovery of three primitive rocket launchers in the area north of the Litani River, between the towns of Kfar Tebnit and Arnoun southeast of the city of Nabatieh.”

It went on to say that it dismantled the launchers and will continue to take the necessary measures to “control the situation in the south.”

The IDF has intermittently targeted Hezbollah terrorists and assets in Lebanon since the truce formally expired on Feb. 18.

On Thursday, the military struck Hezbollah rocket launchers in Southern Lebanon and underground infrastructure belonging to the Iranian proxy in the Land of the Cedars’ Beqaa Valley.

“The IDF will continue to operate to remove any threat to the State of Israel and prevent any attempt by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to rebuild its forces,” the military said at the time.

On Sunday, the IDF struck a command-and-control center in Southern Lebanon used by Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. Earlier in the day, the IDF confirmed that a parked vehicle near the Avivim border moshav had been hit by gunfire likely from Lebanon. No injuries were reported.

Last week, Katz confirmed that Israeli troops will remain at five strategic outposts in Southern Lebanon “indefinitely.”

The five outposts are located at a hill near Labbouneh, opposite the Israeli border town of Shlomi; on the Jabal Blat peak, opposite Moshav Zar’it; on a hill opposite Moshav Avivim and Kibbutz Malkia; on a hill opposite Moshav Margaliot; and on a hill opposite the town of Metula.

On March 11, Israel and Lebanon initiated negotiations toward settling the border disputes between the countries. Representatives of the IDF, the United States, France and Lebanon agreed during a meeting in Naqoura in southwestern Lebanon to establish three joint working groups aimed at stabilizing the region.

The working groups will focus on three main issues: The five strategic points in Southern Lebanon that remain under Israeli control following the expiration of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire; the U.N.-delineated Blue Line border and the 13 territorial disputes between the two countries; and the status of Lebanese detainees held by Israel.