Rocket reportedly fired into Israel from Lebanon
Residents near Metulla report loud explosion, IDF searching for missile remains
A rocket was fired from south Lebanon at Israel, Lebanese media reported Sunday night.
Residents in the area of Metulla, near the border with Lebanon, reported hearing a high-pitched whistle followed by a loud boom before midnight. There were no initial reports of injury or damage.
A security source told Lebanon’s Daily Star newspaper that the rocket was fired from the area of Burj al-Marouk, near the town of Marjayoun. The town is about five kilometers (3 miles) from Metulla.
Israel Defense Forces troops were dispatched to the area to locate the rocket, if it fell within Israel. Troops from the UNIFIL peacekeeping force also conducted searches inside Lebanon, The Daily Star reported.
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The reported rocket fire came several hours after a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut was shelled, injuring four people.
There was no claim of responsibility for that attack. However, a Syrian rebel commander threatened earlier this week to strike against Hezbollah strongholds in retaliation for the militia’s military support for Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Hezbollah fired thousands of rockets into Israel during the Second Lebanon War in 2006, and the Shi’ite terror group has threatened to attack Israel in response to reported attacks by Israeli planes inside Syria earlier this month.
Those attacks were carried out to stop advanced weapons transfers from Iran to Hezbollah, according to unnamed American and Israeli sources.
On Monday, Israel will hold a massive national preparedness drill, which will focus on chemical attacks, as well as rocket strikes on the Israeli heartland.
The head of the IDF’s Home Front Command, Maj. Gen. Eyal Eisenberg, said last week that the outbreak of a war in which Israel would be hit with a “large volume of rocket fire” was a certainty. “Our opponents hold long-range missiles with large warheads and the capacity to carry hundreds of kilos,” he said.
The drill will include preparation for possible missile strikes against Israel, particularly in the greater Tel Aviv area. The first few days will center on protecting civilian populations at public institutions and private households. Two alarms will blare on Monday, at 12:30 p.m. and 7:05 p.m., and citizens will be requested to go to safe rooms or bomb shelters and to stay inside for 10 minutes.
The drill will mark the first time an entire network of early warning systems will be tested. In addition to sirens, civilians are to receive alerts from various sources, including from cellphones, social networks, and the television.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
