UPDATES CASUALTIES; CHANGES DECK; ADDS DETAILS
By Zein Khalil
JERUSALEM (AA) - Dozens of rockets were launched from southern Lebanon towards the Safed area and its surroundings in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel, reported Israeli media on Saturday.
According to the daily Israel Hayom, dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon towards Safed.
Yedioth Ahronoth added that one of the rockets made a direct hit on a building in the area.
The Israeli army radio confirmed that "approximately 40 rockets were fired from southern Lebanon towards the Upper Galilee," though further details were not provided.
Separately, the Israeli army announced that two soldiers were injured, one critically, after a rocket fired from Lebanon struck the Misgav Am area in Upper Galilee, northern Israel.
The statement also noted that "55 other rockets were launched from Lebanon, with some landing in open areas in Upper Galilee, causing no additional injuries."
As a result of the rocket strikes, several fires broke out in the area.
Yedioth Ahronoth reported that "firefighting teams are battling over 10 fires that erupted following the rocket attacks in Upper Galilee, including near Mishmar HaYarden, Ayelet HaShahar, and Mahanaim."
The newspaper also mentioned power outages in parts of the city of Safed and its surroundings due to the rocket impacts.
Earlier on Saturday, Israel Hayom reported a state of high alert on Israel’s northern border following a major Israeli airstrike on Nabatieh in southern Lebanon.
The Lebanese Health Ministry reported earlier on Saturday that 10 people were killed by an Israeli airstrike on the Wadi al-Kfour area in the Nabatieh district of southern Lebanon.
Fears have grown of a full-fledged war between Israel and Hezbollah amid an exchange of cross-border attacks especially after the July 30 assassination of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut the previous day.
The escalation comes against the backdrop of a deadly Israeli onslaught on Gaza, which has killed over 40,000 people since last October, since an attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
*Writing by Ikram Kouachi