Israel and Hezbollah Trade Fire After Pager and Walkie-Talkie Attacks

Israel and Hezbollah Trade Fire After Pager and Walkie-Talkie Attacks

Anti-tank missiles fired from Lebanon caused injuries, Israel’s public broadcaster reported. The Israeli military said it had struck several Hezbollah sites in Lebanon.

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By Matthew Mpoke Bigg

Israel and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah traded cross-border attacks overnight and into Thursday, continuing a pattern of strikes after two extraordinary days in which hand-held devices belonging to Hezbollah members exploded, killing over 30 and wounding thousands of others.

Two anti-tank missiles fired from Lebanon toward the Upper Galilee region of Israel injured eight people, six lightly and two more seriously, according to Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster. It gave no details and did not say whether those wounded were civilians or military. It was not possible to confirm the reports independently.

Hezbollah said that it had launched exploding drones at an Israeli military base and at artillery positions. The Israeli military said that there were no immediate reports of injuries, but that firefighters were working to battle blazes caused by drones.

Israel’s military said it had struck infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah at six sites, as well as a weapons storage facility near the town of Khiam in southern Lebanon.

Since the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel started the war in Gaza, Hezbollah has fired thousands of missiles and drones at Israel in support of Hamas, which like Hezbollah is backed by Iran.

Israel has struck back, assassinating senior members of the militia and striking thousands of targets. This week’s attacks on Hezbollah members, which have been widely attributed to Israel, have escalated concerns that the conflict could turn into a larger war.

More than 100,000 people have fled their homes in southern Lebanon, and Israel has ordered the evacuation of more than 60,000 people in the north of the country.

Euan Ward contributed reporting.

Our Coverage of the Middle East Crisis

• Device Attacks in Lebanon: A day after pagers exploded across Lebanon, a second wave of deadly blasts rocked the country, as hand-held radios carried by Hezbollah members blew up.
• Israel’s Audacious Attack: What did Israel’s device attacks in Lebanon accomplish, and what did they cost? “The Daily” explains.
• Chaos Inside Hezbollah: The attacks targeting Hezbollah’s devices caused thousands of injuries, piercing the group’s rank and file and raising questions about how it will respond.
• Hamas’s Future in Gaza: One of Hamas’s most senior officials said in an interview that the militant group expects to play a decisive role in the enclave when the war with Israel is over.
• A Struggle to Celebrate: Since the Oct. 7 attacks and the start of the war in Gaza, marking major holidays has been completely upended for three religions in the region.