On January 6, the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon announced that it had launched more than 60 missiles at an Israeli military base, describing the attack as "a response to the assassination of the deputy leader of Hamas in Beirut".
"As part of the initial response to the assassination of leader Sheikh Saleh al-Arouri, the Islamic Resistance (Hezbollah) attacked the Meron air control base (northern Israel) with 62 different types of missiles," the Iran-backed group said in a statement on the same day.
Smoke rises near an Israeli outpost after a Hezbollah rocket was fired. (Photo: CNA)
The Israel-Lebanon border has seen frequent gun battles, mainly between Israeli forces and Hamas's ally Hezbollah, since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out on October 7.
Earlier on the evening of January 2, Hamas accused Israel of assassinating three senior officials of the organization in a drone attack on a building in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut, including leader Sheikh Saleh al-Arouri.
A member of the Hamas Political Bureau condemned the "cowardly assassination" of Palestinian leaders and symbols inside and outside the country, and affirmed that these actions will not weaken the will and determination of the Palestinian people.
For his part, Lebanon's interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the attack in the southern suburbs of Beirut was an "Israeli crime" aimed at pushing Lebanon into a new phase of confrontation, following the daily attacks in the south that have resulted in a large number of deaths and injuries.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack. However, a US defence official told AFP that the assassination was carried out by Israel, raising concerns about further escalation in the region.
The Israeli military said it had detected about 40 rocket launches from Lebanese territory on the morning of January 6, and said in a statement that Israeli forces also struck a unit responsible for some of the launches shortly afterwards.
Air raid sirens were heard in towns and cities across northern Israel, later also in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Hoa Vu (Source: Channel News Asia)
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