Over 100 Hezbollah rockets target Israel’s Haifa, deploys first reserve division into Lebanon

Jerusalem/Beirut: Hezbollah forces fired nearly 105 rockets toward Haifa Bay, the Upper Galilee, and Central Galilee on Tuesday, the Israeli military said, adding that interceptors were deployed to counter the attack.

A woman in her 70s was injured by shrapnel and taken to the hospital, the Magen David Adom rescue service reported.

In Kiryat Yam, a city north of Haifa, another rocket struck a residential building, Israeli state-owned Kan TV news reported.

“The majority of the projectiles were intercepted by the Israel Air Force Aerial Defence Array,” the military said, noting that “multiple” rockets managed to hit the area as reported by Xinhua news agency.

Hezbollah confirmed on Tuesday in a statement that it targeted the northern Israeli city of Haifa and the Krayot cluster — which contains four small cities and two neighbourhoods in Haifa — at noon with a large salvo of missiles to support the Palestinians in Gaza, defend Lebanon and its people, and respond to “the barbaric Israeli invasion of cities, villages, and civilians”.

The rocket barrage followed a series of Israeli airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburb earlier on Tuesday.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it is carrying out strikes against Hezbollah targets in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

In a separate statement on Tuesday, the IDF said it sent its reserve unit, the 146th Armour Division, across the northwestern border with Lebanon on Monday to conduct “limited, localised, targeted operational activities against Hezbollah terror targets and infrastructure in southwestern Lebanon”.

Photos and video footage released by the IDF showed troops operating tanks and Humvee tactical vehicles near the Israel-Lebanon border.

The 146th Armor Division is the fourth division Israel has sent across Lebanon and the first reserve division it has deployed since the start of its ground campaign.

Also on Tuesday, the IDF said its Golani Brigade took “operational control” of a Hezbollah combat compound, including a residential building and an olive grove in the village of Maroun al-Ras in southern Lebanon, where a launcher was found, along with underground infrastructure, hideouts, a stockpile of weapons, and living quarters.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah Deputy Leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Tuesday that the group’s military strength remains intact despite Israeli strikes.

“The war has not weakened our resolve to resist. Our fighters remain steadfast, and the command structure is unified. This conflict has not and will not undermine our commitment to counter Israeli aggression,” Qassem said in a televised address, marking one year since the start of the Hezbollah-Israeli war in Lebanon.

He emphasised that Hezbollah continues to target Israeli positions and is expanding its operations.

“We will hit any location we choose, according to our strategic plan,” Qassem said.

Assuring that Hezbollah’s leadership remains intact despite Israeli attempts to target its commanders, Qassem added, “Our chain of command remains fully functional, and we have filled all vacancies. Hezbollah is operating at full capacity and with complete readiness.”

Since September 23, Israel has launched an intensive air campaign on Lebanon, dubbed “Arrows of the North,” marking a significant escalation with Hezbollah.

The cross-border exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel, which began on October 8, 2023, have raised concerns of a wider conflict amid the ongoing Hamas-Israel war in Gaza.