The IDF fired artillery shells into southern Lebanon early Tuesday after two rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel earlier.
Two rockets were launched into the western Galil overnight Monday, triggering sirens in northern cities and towns. Fortunately, there were no reports of injuries or damage, with one of the rockets intercepted by the Iron Dome and the other landing in an open area.
The IDF stated later that the rockets were fired by Palestinian terrorists in southern Israel. Several Palestinian terror groups operate from Lebanese territory along with Hezbollah, all backed by Iran.
The attack came just hours before Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s scheduled visit to the city of Ma’alot -Tarshiha in the Galil together with Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel for a ceremony marking the city’s connections to Bezeq’s fiber-optic network.
בטיסה בדרך למעלות-תרשיחא. @MatanKahana לא הצטרף.
הוא פוחד מטיסות במסוקים…@naftalibennett pic.twitter.com/4SQQUnLZfz— Yoaz Hendel יועז הנדל (@YoazHendel1) July 20, 2021
ראש הממשלה נפתלי בנט ושר התקשורת יועז הנדל חנכו את הסיב האופטי במעלות-תרשיחא.
רה"מ בנט: "זהו צעד קטן לסיבים, צעד גדול לפריפריה ולכל עם ישראל"https://t.co/78yHfEvW8T pic.twitter.com/WspJdYkEee
— ראש ממשלת ישראל (@IsraeliPM_heb) July 20, 2021
“I’m saying this loud and clear,” Bennett said. “We will not allow Israeli sovereignty and security to be harmed. Whoever attempts to harm us will pay a painful price.”
“Lebanon is on the verge of collapse, like every country where Iran is entrenched. Its citizens have been taken hostage by Khamenei and Nasrallah for the sake of Iranian interests. It’s unfortunate, but we will not accept a spillover of the situation in Lebanon into Israel,” Bennett asserted.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)