50 more homes in Israeli Metula settlement damaged by rocket fire from Lebanon

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) - Fifty more homes in the illegal Metula settlement were damaged by rocket fire from Lebanon on Thursday, raising the total number of affected homes in the area to 300 since Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli media reported.

The attacks, which daily Israel Hayom described as causing significant damage, marked an escalation in cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel.

The group claimed responsibility for 17 attacks on Israeli soldiers, military sites, and settlements in northern Israel, the largest number of assaults in a single day in 98 days.

David Azulai, head of the Metula settlement council, told Yedioth Ahronoth that the rockets fired from southern Lebanon ignited several fires and caused extensive damage to homes.

The renewed hostilities come amid rising tensions following Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip, which began after a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year. The conflict has led to the deaths of nearly 41,300 people, mostly women and children, in Gaza.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara