Lebanon - August 25, 2024

Israeli and Hezbollah forces engaged in extensive exchanges of fire early Sunday morning along the Israel-Lebanon border, marking a significant escalation in their longstanding conflict.

Hezbollah announced it had launched hundreds of missiles into Israel in retaliation for the killing of its commander, Fouad Shokor, in an Israeli airstrike on Beirut last month. In response, Israel reported conducting numerous preemptive airstrikes targeting Hezbollah's rocket launchers in southern Lebanon.

The intensification of hostilities raises the risk of a broader conflict involving regional and international actors, including the United States and Iran, and threatens to undermine ongoing ceasefire efforts in Gaza, where Israel has been engaged in a protracted conflict with Hamas for over 10 months.

During an emergency national security cabinet meeting in Tel Aviv on Sunday morning, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the destruction of thousands of Hezbollah rockets.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) reported that around 100 Air Force fighter jets carried out preemptive strikes on Hezbollah rocket launchers. However, these attacks did not prevent Hezbollah from launching a large-scale assault on Israeli targets.

Hezbollah reported firing over 320 rockets and drones at northern Israel, while the IDF confirmed that about 210 rockets and 20 drones were launched from Lebanon, with some intercepted and others causing damage and injuries.

The Lebanon-based group also dismissed Israeli claims that the preemptive strikes disrupted its retaliation operations, claiming that the first round of its operations was "successful."

In Acre, a coastal city in northern Israel, a woman sustained light injuries from Hezbollah shrapnel, according to Magen David Adom, Israel's first aid service. Lebanese sources reported four militants killed and six others wounded in southern Lebanon due to Israeli raids.

Despite intense morning clashes, fighting has largely subsided since Sunday afternoon. However, Netanyahu warned that the Israeli airstrikes are "not the end of the story," adding that Israeli forces will "strike Hezbollah with surprising crushing blows."

After Hezbollah's rocket and drone attacks, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared a 48-hour nationwide emergency. Educational activities and workplaces may continue if shelter is available, but outdoor gatherings are limited to 30 people, and indoor gatherings to 300. Beaches near the Lebanon border are closed.

Shotlist:
Lebanon - Aug 25, 2024:
1. Various of blasts, dense smoke.

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