Skirmishes continue between Hezbollah, Israeli army

BEIRUT

The Lebanese group Hezbollah announced on Friday that it launched missile attacks on two military sites in northern Israel, and the Israeli army in response fired bursts of gunfire at towns in southern Lebanon.

In a statement, Hezbollah said it "targeted the surveillance equipment at the new center for military collection and reconnaissance crews in the Metulla region, with guided missiles.”

Hezbollah added that it had achieved a direct hit.

In a separate statement, Hezbollah noted that it used missile weapons to target a group of Israeli soldiers engaged in fortification and demolition work near the Hanita site in the north, without disclosing the results of the attack.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army on the group’s statement.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes "violated the sound barrier in two batches over the airspace of Keserwan in Mount Lebanon."

Israeli aircraft broke the sound barrier over the Jubail coast airspace, extending into northern Tripoli, Koura, and Matn, the agency added.

The agency also reported Israel's use of flares during nighttime and early morning hours over border villages near the southern Blue Line.

The Israeli army also discharged heavy machine gun fire toward forests near Ramiya and Aita al-Shaab in the central sector, according to the agency.

Israeli reconnaissance aircraft persistently flew over villages in the Tire and Bint Jbeil districts of southern Lebanon, the agency added.

Fears have grown about a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah amid an exchange of cross-border attacks between the two sides.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of a deadly Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 38,300 victims since October, following an attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi