2 dead, 8 hurt as Israel strikes across south Lebanon after rocket fire

Israel launched at least 18 air strikes on at least 11 areas across south Lebanon on Saturday after intercepting cross-border rocket fire, with Lebanese state media reporting two people killed and eight wounded in the southern town of Touline.

Israel's Prime Minister's office said it instructed the army to act forcefully against dozens of targets in Lebanon, adding: “Israel will not allow any harm to its citizens and sovereignty." Israel's army said carrier out strikes on dozens of alleged Hezbollah targets in south Lebanon.

The Israeli army said three rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel in the morning, setting off air raid sirens in the region for the first time since a November ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

The Israeli military said all three rockets were intercepted and there was no immediate claim of responsibility from any group.

But Israeli defense chiefs said they held the Lebanese government responsible for all hostile fire from its territory regardless of who launched it.

"We cannot allow fire from Lebanon on Galilee communities," Defense Minister Israel Katz said, referring to settlements in the north, many of which were evacuated after Hezbollah began firing on Israel in support of Hamas in October 2023.

"The Lebanese government is responsible for attacks from its territory. I have ordered the military to respond accordingly," Katz said.

"We promised security to Galilee communities, and that is exactly what will happen. Metula's fate is the same as Beirut's."

Armed forces chief Eyal Zamir warned the military would "respond severely".

"The state of Lebanon bears responsibility for upholding the agreement," he said, referring to the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah which was signed by the government on the Lebanese side.

Lebanon's official National News Agency said Israeli air strikes and shelling had targeted several areas of the south.

NNA had earlier reported Israeli strikes wounded two people in the border village of Kfarkila.

- U.N. 'alarm' -

The U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon said it was "alarmed by the possible escalation of violence" following the morning's rocket fire.

"Any further escalation of this volatile situation could have serious consequences for the region," it said.

"We strongly urge all parties to avoid jeopardizing the progress made, especially when civilian lives and the fragile stability observed in recent months are at risk."

There was no immediate claim for the rocket fire on Israel.

Although Hezbollah launched the great majority of the rockets fired during the past two years, the Lebanese arm of Palestinian militant group Hamas claimed some attacks.

Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hezbollah was supposed to pull its forces back north of the Litani River, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli border and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.

Israel has carried out repeated air strikes during the ceasefire that it said targeted Hezbollah military sites that violated the agreement.

The Lebanese Army said it had dismantled three makeshift rocket batteries in an area north of the Litani on Saturday.

- Gaza assault enters day five -

Saturday's flare-up on the Lebanese border came as Israel's renewed offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza entered its fifth day.

Israel's resumption of military operations on Tuesday shattered the relative calm that had reigned since a January 19 ceasefire.