Hezbollah Launches Major Attack on Northern Israel Following Commander’s Assassination

By Yoni Weiss

Nearly a day after the assassination of Muhammad Neamah Nasser, commander of Hezbollah’s Aziz Regional Division, in an Israeli airstrike, numerous sirens warning of consecutive rocket and drone barrages were activated across northern Israel on Thursday morning.

A Hezbollah official told Al Jazeera that the group has launched over 20 drones and 200 rockets and missiles, with some scoring direct hits on targets within Israel. This marks Hezbollah’s largest single attack against Israel since the war began on Oct. 7.

Sirens warning of suspected hostile aircraft intrusions and rocket fire were activated in various locations across northern Israel, including the Akhziv Miluot industrial park and the towns of Shlomi, Hanita, Rosh Hanikra, Matzuva, Betzet, Liman, Kabri, Ein Yaakov, Ga’aton, Yehiam, Gesher Haziv, Nahariya, Sa’ar, Kabri, and Ben Ami in the Western Galilee. Additional warnings sounded in Acre, Ein Hamifratz, Evron, Mazra’a, Shavei Zion, Regba, and Lochamei Hageta’ot.

The first alarms were heard in Kiryat Shmona and surrounding areas, including Amir, Kfar Blum, Sde Nechemia, Beit Hillel, Lehavot Habashan, Neot Mordechai, Tel Chai, and Kfar Giladi. Approximately 15 rockets were fired at the Upper Galilee in the initial salvo, most of which landed in unpopulated areas, with some intercepted by air defense systems.

Hezbollah-affiliated Al Manar network reported that Israeli artillery fire targeted the village of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon, west of the Israeli border town of Misgav Am. Sirens also warned of suspected hostile aircraft intrusions in Kibbutz Ayelet Hashachar in the Hula Valley, Ramat Naftali, Yiftach, Bar’am, Avivim, Yiron, Malkia, Dishon, Shlomi, Matzuva, and Betzet in the Western Galilee. The Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen network claimed that drones had penetrated Israeli airspace.

Alerts continued in Kiryat Shmona and towns like Snir, Maayan Baruch, Dafna, Metula, Kfar Giladi, Hagoshrim, Margaliot, Beit Hillel, Kfar Yuval, She’ar Yashuv, Misgav Am, Manara, Tel Hai, Kibbutz Dan, and Ghajar. In the Golan Heights, sirens were activated in Moshav Ilania, Neve Ativ, Ein Qiniyye, Nimrod, Majdal Shams, Mas’ade, Sha’al, Kela, Katzrin, and Kidmat Tzvi, warning of both aircraft intrusions and rocket fire. The attack reportedly ignited several brush fires.

Sirens also sounded in Nachal Oz in the Gaza border area. For 40 minutes, continuous sirens blared across the north as part of a combined barrage of drones and rockets targeting the Galilee and Golan Heights.