{"id":115275,"date":"2024-08-25T17:05:56","date_gmt":"2024-08-25T15:05:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=115275"},"modified":"2024-08-25T08:15:50","modified_gmt":"2024-08-25T06:15:50","slug":"28-05-98","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=115275","title":{"rendered":"Israel attacks Hezbollah in Lebanon, preempting \u2018extensive attack\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>Israel attacks Hezbollah in Lebanon, preempting \u2018extensive attack\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

update desk | Israel at War<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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The terror organization launched more than 150 projectiles at Israel from Lebanon, the Israeli military said. The Israeli defense minister and U.S. defense secretary spoke.<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

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\nAn Israeli Air Force F-15 fighter jet takes off from the Ovda Airbase in southern Israel, Nov. 25, 2013. Photo by Ofer Zidon\/Flash90.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

The Israeli military attacked sites preemptively in Lebanon, from which Hezbollah planned to launch rockets and missiles at Israel in an \u201cextensive attack,\u201d early in the morning on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces\u00a0said<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hezbollah subsequently launched more than 150 projectiles at the Jewish state from Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces\u00a0stated<\/a>. \u201cWe target terrorist infrastructure, they target civilians,\u201d it said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael\u2019s preemptive attack was aimed at missile launchers in Lebanon that had been programmed to be fired at 5 a.m. in the direction of Tel Aviv,\u201d the\u00a0New York Times<\/em>\u00a0reported<\/a>, citing a western intelligence official, who \u201csaid that all the launchers that were targeted were destroyed and that Israel was anticipating a harsh response from Hezbollah.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s strike followed \u201cmore than 6,700 rockets, missiles and explosive (drones) fired by Hezbollah at Israeli families, homes and communities since Oct. 8,\u201d IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Israel could see that Hezbollah was about to launch an \u201cextensive attack\u201d on the Jewish state, endangering the Lebanese civilians among whom the terror group embeds its weapons, Hagari added.<\/span><\/p>\n

He told Lebanese civilians to vacate the areas in which Hezbollah is operating, as the terror group risks escalating conflict in the region.<\/span><\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meet at the Kirya in Tel Aviv on Aug. 25, 2024. Credit: Ma\u2019ayan Toaf (GPO).<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael will not tolerate Hezbollah\u2019s attacks on our civilians,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are operating in self-defense from Hezbollah. \u2026 We are ready to do everything\u2014everything\u2014we need to defend the people of Israel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Hezbollah reportedly\u00a0stated<\/a>\u00a0that its attack was in response to Israel\u00a0killing<\/a>\u00a0its top commander Fuad Shukr last month.<\/span><\/p>\n

Video circulating online purporting to depict Israel\u2019s strike showed massive explosions lighting up the night sky in Lebanon, and Iron Dome interceptions over Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant had met, and Netanyahu plans to convene the security cabinet at 7 a.m. local time, per\u00a0his office<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Gallant called a \u201cspecial situation on the home front,\u201d a \u201cdeclaration on the state of emergency (that) enables the IDF to issue instructions to the citizens of Israel, including limiting gatherings and closing sites where it may be relevant,\u201d per the Israeli Prime Minister\u2019s Office.<\/span><\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meet at the Kirya in Tel Aviv on Aug. 25, 2024. Credit: Ariel Hermoni\/Israeli Ministry of Defense.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Gallant and U.S. Secretary of State Lloyd Austin had also spoken on Sunday Israel time, shortly before midnight in Washington, according to the Israeli Defense Ministry.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have conducted precise strikes in Lebanon in order to thwart an imminent threat against the citizens of Israel,\u201d Gallant said, per an Israeli readout of the call. \u201cWe are closely following developments in Beirut, and we are determined to use all the means at our disposal in order to defend our citizens.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Gallant and Austin \u201cdiscussed the importance of avoiding regional escalation,\u201d and Gallant \u201cemphasized that Israel\u2019s defense establishment is determined to defend the citizens of Israel and will use all the means at its disposal to remove imminent threats,\u201d per the Israeli readout. \u201cThe defense establishment is following developments in Beirut and is prepared to deploy defensive and offensive means.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

U.S. President Joe Biden \u201cis closely monitoring events in Israel and Lebanon,\u201d stated Sean Savett, a spokesman for the National Security Council. \u201cHe has been engaged with his national security team throughout the evening.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAt his direction, senior U.S. officials have been communicating continuously with their Israeli counterparts,\u201d Savett added. \u201cWe will keep supporting Israel\u2019s right to defend itself, and we will keep working for regional stability.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ben Gurion International Airport was reportedly\u00a0closed<\/a>\u00a0amid the attacks.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSince Oct. 7, Hezbollah has been firing rockets against Israel, displacing up to 100,000 Israelis from their homes and communities\u2014an unacceptable loss of sovereignty that no other country, including our own, would ever accept,\u201d\u00a0stated<\/a>\u00a0Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.).<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael is no exception to the rule of self-defense,\u201d Torres said. \u201cThe Jewish state has a right to respond to the relentless rocket-fire from Hezbollah, which stands as the most heavily armed terrorist organization in the world and the most powerful proxy for the Islamic Republic of Iran.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to responding to 10 months of relentless rocket fire, Israel is acting on the basis of U.S.-Israeli intelligence revealing an imminent major attack from Hezbollah,\u201d he added. \u201cHence the need for an Israeli strike that is both preemptive and defensive all at once.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, stated that \u201cIran-backed terror group Hezbollah has launched thousands of rockets at Israel since Oct. 7.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael could not sit back and wait for thousands more to be fired into Israel, so tonight it struck preemptively to protect innocent civilians,\u201d he\u00a0added<\/a>. \u201cIsrael has the right to defend itself and the obligation to protect its citizens in the face of ongoing Hezbollah attacks.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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This is a developing story.<\/em><\/p>\n