Israel intercepts Yemen missile as Lebanon airstrikes intensify
On Thursday, just before midnight Eastern Time in Tel Aviv and central Israel, alarm sirens wailed. "Millions of Israelis are running to shelter as sirens sound across all of central Israel," reported the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The cause was a rocket fired from Yemen.
In recordings published online, among others, Israelis can be seen abandoning their cars on the streets after the alarm was announced.
Panic on the streets of Tel Aviv
Some people fled to the nearest shelters, while others lay down on the roadway. Many also escaped to metro stations.
The Israeli Army Radio claims that during the alarm, approximately 2 million Israelis rushed to shelters.
Missile fired from Yemen
After midnight, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that the rocket fired from Yemen was successfully intercepted "outside the country's borders" using the long-range Arrow air defence system. It was added that sirens were activated due to concerns about falling missile debris.
The emergency medical service reports that no one was injured; however, many people suffered panic attacks or injuries while fleeing to shelters.
The Israel Defense Forces also stated that after the attack, the Home Front Command did not issue any new instructions.
Israel attacks Lebanon. Hundreds of casualties
For several days, Israel has been conducting airstrikes in northern Lebanon. Over four days of intense airstrikes, nearly 700 people have been killed, and thousands have been injured. The Israeli army reported that on Thursday, they attacked about 220 Hezbollah targets.
According to Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, about half a million internal refugees fled the bombed areas. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported about 90,000 escapees on Wednesday.
Hezbollah, which controls southern Lebanon and is backed by Iran, has been fighting Israel with varying intensity for decades. Since the outbreak of the war in the Gaza Strip, it has regularly shelled the northern part of the country, prompting strong counter-attacks. According to the Israeli military, on Thursday, Hezbollah fired about 150 rockets. Some were intercepted, while the rest didn’t cause significant damage or casualties.
Israel declares that the goal of its intensified bombardments is to kill the leaders and fighters of the group and destroy its arsenal, which, according to authorities in Jerusalem, is also stored in civilian facilities.
