Missiles rain down on Israeli targets in fresh wave of Hezbollah counterattack

Hebrew-language media outlets reported that Hezbollah members fired a number of missiles at multiple locations in and around the Galilee region in the northern part of the occupied territories on Saturday. 

The outlets added that the incoming missiles triggered sirens in several towns and cities, forcing thousands of settlers to take refuge in bomb shelters.

According to local sources, at least eight missiles were launched at Israeli positions in the initial stage of the operation, one of which struck a site in Kiryat Shmona city.

Hezbollah’s missile and drone attacks continue as the Israeli army has been occupying parts of southern Lebanon for more than 40 days, vowing to dismantle the resistance group’s military infrastructure and stop missile attacks.

Hezbollah announced in a statement on Saturday morning that it had carried out 22 military operations against Israeli army positions and equipment within the past 24 hours in response to Israel’s ceasefire violations, attacks on civilians, and the destruction of homes and villages in southern Lebanon.

A total of 24 Israeli soldiers and settlers have been killed since hostilities between Hezbollah and the Tel Aviv regime began in early March, including 23 troops.

The Israeli military on Wednesday declared all areas south of Lebanon’s Zahrani River — an area located roughly 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the border — as “combat zones” and told residents to evacuate ahead of attacks against Hezbollah.

The sweeping warning was the first of its kind since the April 17 ceasefire.

Hezbollah’s First-Person View (FPV) drones are small, low-cost, explosive-laden “kamikaze” drones controlled by an operator wearing goggles. Their most critical feature is a physical fiber-optic cable (10–30 km long) that connects the drone to the controller. Because this cable transmits video and commands without any wireless signal, the drones are effectively resistant to jamming by electronic warfare systems, allowing Hezbollah to bypass the IOF’s advanced and very expensive defense technologies.

These drones have caused significant casualties among Israeli occupation forces by accurately targeting troop gatherings, tanks, and other military assets while evading radar and heat detection. 

The Hebrew-language Maariv daily newspaper has termed Hezbollah’s drones as “a terrifying nightmare,” arguing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is losing the northern sector of the occupied territories to the Lebanese resistance group.

Since March 2, Israel has been conducting an expanded offensive on Lebanon, killing more than 3,200 people, injuring over 9,600, and displacing over 1.6 million individuals.