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Lebanon, February 14, 2024

Israeli woman killed, 8 injured as rocket barrage from Lebanon hits Safed

Original source

The Times of Israel

An Israeli woman was killed and eight others were wounded as a barrage of rockets fired from Lebanon slammed into Safed and an army base in the northern city, the military and medical officials said.

There was no immediate claim for the attack, although it was believed to have been carried out by the Hezbollah terror group, which has been launching daily rocket, missile, and drone attacks on northern Israel in recent months, saying it is doing so in support of the Hamas terror group in Gaza, against whom Israel is waging war.

The Israel Defense Forces and Safed’s municipality said rockets hit an army base in the area, some 13 kilometers (8 miles) from the Lebanon border.

“Numerous launches were identified crossing from Lebanon into the areas of Netua, Menara, and into an IDF base in northern Israel,” the military said, adding that it was striking the launch sites.

Safed’s municipality also said rockets hit the city’s industrial zone and an area near Ziv Hospital.

One person was killed and eight others were wounded in the attack, according to medical officials.

The director general of the Magen David Adom ambulance service, Eli Bin, told the Kan public broadcaster that as medics scanned buildings that were hit by the rocket fire, the body of a woman was discovered.

Ziv Hospital said eight injured people were brought to the emergency room following the rocket attacks on the city, including one person listed in serious condition.

The hospital said another person was in moderate condition, and six others were being treated for light injuries.

Sirens had sounded several times in Safed and nearby communities close to the Lebanon border.

In response to the attack, the IDF said fighter jets were carrying out a “widespread” wave of airstrikes in Lebanon.

It did not immediately provide further details.

Since October 8, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.

So far, the skirmishes on the border have resulted in six civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of at least nine IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.

Hezbollah has named 193 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 29 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and at least 19 civilians, three of whom were journalists, have been killed.

War erupted in Gaza with Hamas’s October 7 massacre, which saw some 3,000 terrorists burst across the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip by land, air and sea, killing some 1,200 people and seizing over 250 hostages, mostly civilians. Entire families were executed in their homes, and over 360 people were slaughtered at an outdoor festival, many amid horrific acts of brutality by the terrorists.

Israel has warned it will no longer tolerate the presence of Hezbollah along the Lebanon frontier, where it could attempt to carry out an attack similar to the massacre committed by Hamas on October 7.