Hezbollah, the Islamist movement in Lebanon, said it carried out attacks on Israeli positions on the Lebanese border on Saturday.
An anonymous source told Reuters that Hezbollah had deployed a powerful rocket that had not previously been used in combat and that targets had been hit near Ayta al-Shaab and Rmeich, two villages in southern Lebanon. The Israeli army is said to have stationed units in the area to repel attacks from Lebanon.
Hezbollah’s claim cannot be independently verified.
Since the start of the Gaza war, there have been brief clashes and shelling back and forth between Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli army. Israel’s greatest fear is that Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, will join the war. That would mean that the army would have to fight on two fronts.
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah yesterday made his first speech fiercely against the Israelis and the Americans, but has not yet announced an extension of the war. He still called that ‘an option’, but also called on his supporters to be patient. “We need time to deliver the final blow.”
The Israeli military said its warplanes struck Hezbollah targets in response to an earlier attack from Lebanese territory, and that the aerial bombardment was supported by artillery and tank fire.
Peter van Ammelrooy
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah Despite all the rhetoric, seems to be hesitating about interfering in the Gaza war, correspondent Jenne Jan Holtland writes: Hezbollah has a lot to lose
