Israeli army announces 5 towns near Lebanese border 'closed military zones'

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - The Israeli army on Monday announced five towns near the Lebanese border as the "closed military zones" amid ongoing fighting with the Hezbollah.

In a statement, the army said the border towns are Rosh HaNikra, Shlomi, Hanita, Adamit and Arab al-Aramshe, adding that entry into those areas are strictly prohibited.

According to the Times of Israel news website, this is the fourth announcement for declaring areas in northern Israel as closed military zones since the Israeli army started its ground operation in Lebanon.

Separately, the Israeli army warned Lebanese people to stay away from beaches in southern Lebanon, starting from the area of the Awali River and southward, as it claimed that its navy is "to operate against Hezbollah in the area."

Earlier, the Israeli army said some 100 of its fighter jets struck over 120 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon within an hour.

Israel has mounted massive airstrikes across Lebanon against what it claims Hezbollah targets since Sept. 23, killing 1,251, injuring 3,618 others, and displacing more than 1.2 million people.

The aerial campaign was an escalation in yearlong cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah since the start of Tel Aviv’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip that has killed nearly 42,000 people, mostly women and children, since a Hamas attack last year.

Despite international warnings that the Middle East region was on the brink of a regional war amid Israel’s relentless attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, Tel Aviv expanded the conflict by launching a ground invasion into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar