The Israel Defense Forces said two mortars were fired at northern Israel and that troops killed a number of gunmen who infiltrated into Israeli territory from Lebanon on Monday afternoon, as fighting continued in southern Israel in the wake of a major attack launched by the Palestinian Hamas terror group in the Gaza Strip.
Six Israelis were said to have been injured in the northern clashes, including one critically and one seriously.
The Gaza Strip-based Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group claimed responsibility for the armed infiltration on its Telegram channel, saying this was part of the ongoing war between Israel and terror groups in Gaza.
The military’s Home Front Command ordered residents of 28 towns in northern Israel, close to the Lebanon border, to remain in bomb shelters until further notice.
The clashes between the gunmen and Israeli troops occurred near the northern Bedouin Israeli town of Arab al-Aramshe and the Lebanese village of Dhayra.
The IDF said it spotted several armed men infiltrating into the country, and in a later statement said that several of them had been killed.
“IDF soldiers are deployed in the area,” the military said.
قصف مدفعي واشتباك بالرصاص عند حدود بلدة الضهيرة في القطاع الغربي من الجنوب pic.twitter.com/7au8FLb1hv
— علي شعيب || Ali Shoeib ???????? (@alishoeib1970) October 9, 2023
The Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya said it had admitted six people injured in the clashes, including one in critical condition, another in serious condition, two in moderate condition and two in light condition.
The IDF did not immediately provide confirmation of casualties from the incident.
The army said that it used IDF combat helicopters to carry out strikes and shelled targets in the area in response.
A reporter for the Hezbollah-linked Al-Manar station published a video in which gunfire and several explosions can be heard.
An image published by the reporter also showed a large blast in the area, and another clip circulating on social media shows a Hezbollah observation post being targeted.
A Hezbollah official told Reuters it had no part in a cross-border raid.
غارة لللطائرات الحربي قرب مروحين pic.twitter.com/zQAQzKNJTV
— علي شعيب || Ali Shoeib ???????? (@alishoeib1970) October 9, 2023
UN peacekeepers in Lebanon said in a post on X that they “detected explosions near Al-Boustan in southwest Lebanon.”
“While we are working to gather more information, UNIFIL Head & Force Commander Maj Gen Lázaro is in contact with the involved parties, urging them to exercise maximum restraint & utilize UNIFIL’s liaison and coordination mechanisms to prevent further escalation and loss of life,” they added.
IDF has bombed a Hezbollah observation post on the Lebanon border pic.twitter.com/i2xKgmlKQI
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) October 9, 2023
Before the infiltration, incoming rocket sirens sounded in the Upper Galilee towns of Iftach and Ramot Naftali.
The IDF later confirmed that two mortars were launched from Lebanon at northern Israel.
One projectile landed in an open area, causing no injuries, and the other projectile landed short in Lebanon, the IDF said.
On Sunday morning, Hezbollah launched dozens of rockets at three Israeli positions in the contested Mount Dov region, causing damage but no injuries.
Hezbollah claimed to have fired the rockets in solidarity with the Hamas attack in southern Israel.
The IDF responded with artillery shelling and drone strikes against Hezbollah sites.
An apartment building hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip by Palestinian terrorists in the southern city of Ashkelon, October 9, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Hezbollah has largely sat out previous rounds of fighting between Israel and Palestinian terror groups, though it allowed local Palestinian factions to operate out of its territory in southern Lebanon.
But some have feared the Lebanon-based terror group will open up a second front amid the massive invasion by hundreds of Hamas terrorists from the Gaza Strip who entered Israel early Saturday.
Terrorists rampaged through the south of the country on Saturday morning, killing over 800 people, injuring over 2,500, and taking over 100 captives to Gaza. In addition, terrorists took hostages inside Israel in multiple locations and it took security forces long hours to slowly gain control.
The Iran-backed Hezbollah erected two tents in the Mount Dov area on the border some months ago, but later took one down and threatened to attack if Israel took steps to forcibly dismantle the other one.
On Sunday, a military source said the tent was struck in a drone strike, and warning shots were fired later toward Hezbollah members who were attempting to rebuild it.
Israel and Lebanon largely abide by the UN-recognized Blue Line. The line is marked with blue barrels along the border and in some areas is several meters from the Israeli fence, which is built entirely within Israeli territory.
Tensions have remained high with Hezbollah in recent months, with the deployment of dozens of Hezbollah posts along the Lebanese border, including the tent, and increasing patrols and presence by terror group operatives in the area.
Other recent incidents on the Lebanese border have included camouflaged Hezbollah members walking along the border in violation of a UN resolution, and Hezbollah activists crossing the Blue Line (though not the Israeli border fence) on numerous occasions, including attempts to damage the border fence and army surveillance equipment.
