STORY: Hezbollah says fired "large rocket salvo" at Israel's Haifa, threatens to attack "any point" in Israel
SHOOTING TIME: Oct. 15, 2024
DATELINE: Oct. 16, 2024
LENGTH: 00:05:16
LOCATION: Beirut
CATEGORY: MILITARY

SHOTLIST:
1. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): SHEIKH NAIM QASSEM, Hezbollah Deputy Leader
2. various of damage in a hospital in the Bekaa governorate after an Israeli strike, and ruins of a house targeted in Riaq by an Israeli strike
3. smoke resulting from an Israeli strike on the Bekaa governorate town of Karak
4. various of displaced southerners living in tents on the seaside corniche of Beirut
5. SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): HOUSSAM MOKDAD, Displaced Lebanese southerner
6. various of displaced southerners living in tents on the seaside corniche of Beirut
7. SOUNDBITE 3 (Arabic): MICHEL SHAMMA, Lebanese political analyst
8. various of the Grand Serail
9. various of traffic in down town Beirut

STORYLINE:

Hezbollah announced Tuesday that its fighters had shelled the northern Israeli city of Haifa with a "large rocket salvo."

"The Islamic Resistance fighters launched a large rocket salvo toward Haifa at 02:20 p.m. (1120 GMT)," it said in a statement, claiming the rocket attack was carried out "in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in defense of Lebanon and its people, and in response to the Israeli attacks on cities, villages, and civilians."
   
Also on Tuesday, Hezbollah Deputy Leader Sheikh Naim Qassem threatened to "attack any point in Israel," as the Israeli army expanded its attacks in Lebanon.
   
Qassem said the only solution is to reach a ceasefire in both Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.
   
SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): SHEIKH NAIM QASSEM, Hezbollah Deputy Leader
"I tell the Israeli domestic front that the solution is the ceasefire. We are not talking from a weak position. If Israel does not want it, we will continue our attacks. When a ceasefire happens, settlers can return to their houses in the north, and the other issues would be discussed. But with the war continuing, the number of inhabited settlements would rise and hundreds of thousands or more than 2 million would be in danger at any time, any hour, and any day. Do not believe what your officials say about our capabilities, look at the killed and the wounded soldiers by yourself. What they are telling you is not the truth."

SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): HOUSSAM MOKDAD, Displaced Lebanese southerner
"I was sure of my family has moved to a safe place. And I decided to come to the seaside for fun. We are young men and on the seaside we can have fun since our families are safe. We are used to be in displacement. Let our enemy now get used to the situation of displacement.  
We are used to this kind of village life in an open area and a very simple life. We are used to this, but the Israelis are used to a luxury life. The question is not how long can we endure this, it is how long can they endure the displacement. 
We have been used to this, and we can endure it, for two months or two years. And our leader and the love of our hearts, martyr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said, we are certainly going to be victorious now or later."

SOUNDBITE 3 (Arabic): MICHEL SHAMMA, Lebanese political analyst
"For us, today's speech (Sheikh Naim Kassem's) is to continue the rhetoric of the Iranian Shura council Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, in continuing to link the two fronts in Gaza and Lebanon. Today it became clear that the two fronts would not be disconnected, which means the continuation of the escalation of the war on Lebanon. 
This would eventually be reflected on the south in more face to face confrontations between the Israeli enemy and the militants of Hezbollah. And the Israeli enemy would intensify its airstrikes. And what we have seen last night in the Bekaa governorate, particularly on the Baalbek region, is a proof to that."

Meanwhile, Lebanese military sources, who spoke anonymously, told Xinhua that Lebanese army sites monitored the launch of dozens of missiles from Lebanon into northern Israel.
   
"Israeli warplanes and drones carried out 17 raids on southern Lebanon and 11 raids on eastern Lebanon on Tuesday afternoon," they added.
   
According to the Lebanese National News Agency, an Israeli raid on a residence in the Tyre district resulted in the deaths of two individuals and left one person injured.
   
The Israeli army has intensified its attacks on Lebanon in an escalation with Hezbollah since late September, raising concerns about a potential broader conflict amid the ongoing war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Beirut.
(XHTV)