Israeli artillery and airstrikes struck southern Lebanon on Saturday. Forty survivors of Hamas prisoners siege to halt the “infinite war” and smashed southern Lebanon in fresh clashes that risked a volatile ceasefire that ended a year-long conflict with Hezbollah.
According to a spokesman for the Israeli Army, three rockets fired by the Lebanese Air Force were fired in Israel by a Lebanese group, according to a spokesman for the Lebanese army.
According to Lebanon's Ministry of Health, the Israeli Air Force has launched dozens of airstrikes in South Lebanon, causing injuries in Kahul Kira, a border village.
Since adopting a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah on November 27, fire exchanges have been the most intense, killing more than 3,900 people in Lebanon and completing a fight for more than 13 months between the two who have displaced a million people.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned of a serious reaction to a rocket fire shot in a village in an Israeli border village.
“Metura and Beirut are treated the same way. The Lebanese government is fully responsible for fires that arise from its territory,” Katz said.
It is not immediately clear who was responsible for the rocket fire from Lebanon, and a Hezbollah spokesman declined to request comment.
The Lebanese army said it had found and dismantled three “primitive rocket launchers” in southern Lebanon after the rocket fired at Israel. Photos released by the Army showed fragments of bombs and three wooden pillars being excavated into Earth.
The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has halted full-scale military hostility between the two fighting parties, but Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Lebanon despite the truce. Israel reserves the right to unilaterally enforce Lebanon's ceasefire violations and claims it continues to attack what it calls Hezbollah's targets nationwide.
Hezbollah launched the Rockets near the Israeli military post the week after the establishment of the ceasefire, but otherwise it has not attacked Israel. The group was severely weakened as most senior leaders died, thousands of fighter jets died and stocks of weapons were exhausted after the war with Israel.
Lebanon's prime minister, Nawaf Salam, on Saturday warned that there was a risk of renewing military operations in South Lebanon and bringing the country back to war, and that the Lebanese state, not Hezbollah, had urged the Ministry of Defense to ensure that Lebanon decides whether or not to go to war.
Unifil, a UN peacekeeping force that monitors the Israeli-Lebanon border, warned against further military escalations that could break the ceasefire.
“The situation remains extremely vulnerable and we encourage both sides to maintain their commitment,” he said in a statement on Saturday.
Meanwhile, in Israel, thousands of protesters have taken them to the streets, blocking important highways across the country in opposition to the Netanyahu government.
The immediate trigger of rage was the government's attempt to dismiss Lonen Barr, the head of the Internal Security Bureau, a move called an attempt to undermine Israel's democratic system, but the prime minister's decision to crush a two-month ceasefire in Gaza with a fatal airstrike has fueled the demonstrations.
The 40 hostages of Hamas prisoners and 250 families of Israeli soldiers and civilians still in Gaza have signed a letter on Friday calling for Netanyahu to halt Israeli new military activities and return to the negotiation table to secure the release of the 59 hostages still on the territory. In a letter sent to the Prime Minister, they warned that otherwise the living hostages would condemn the death.
“This letter was written in blood and tears,” reads the text. ''It was drafted by friends and family who were caught and murdered by their loved ones and were weeping. “Stop the fight. We'll return to the negotiation table and fully complete the agreement that will return all hostages, even at the expense of ending the war.”
The signatories “choose endless war by saving hostages and saving hostages, and attack the government by sacrificing it. This is a criminal policy. There is no obligation to sacrifice 59 people.”
The letter said on Friday that the Israeli defense minister instructed the troops to “grab more ground” in Gaza and threatened to annex part of the territory, unless Hamas is still held in devastated territory.
Israeli officials have recently escalated their threats and called on Palestinians in Gaza to overthrow Hamas or face consequences.
“I've ordered it [the army] Katz said in a statement. “The more Hamas refuses to release hostages, the more territory annexed by Israel.”
Gaza's civil defense agency said more than 500 people have been killed since artillery fire resumed.
A three-phase ceasefire was agreed in January, but Israel refused to begin consultations on the implementation of the second phase. This was thought to lead to a return of all hostages, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and a lasting end to hostilities.
Instead, Israel proposed a new plan reportedly submitted by US envoy Steve Witkov, which includes a 30-60-day ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages. Israel has not mentioned the release of more Palestinian prisoners, an important element of the first stage.
As Netanyahu is trapped in a fierce battle with Israel's judicial system, the Supreme Court is investigating Netanyahu's national security violation violation violation after the Supreme Court attempts to fire the head of Nathanyahu's domestic intelligence reporting agency, including leaking a classification document to foreign media and Qatar is said to have received significant financial assistance from HAMAS.
Amid protests over the minister's vote for Sack Barr, the Supreme Court on Friday frozen its decision, with orders remaining until the court can hear the petition for the fire and the petition filed by the NGO for the fire.
In a post on X, Netanyahu said, “The Israeli government will decide who will lead the domestic security agency.”
Approximately 1,200 people, primarily Israeli civilians, died in a shocking Hamas attack in October 2023. Subsequent attacks on Gaza by Israel killed more than 49,000 people, mostly civilians.
