Israel Facing Multiple Attacks From Gaza, Lebanon As Hamas Fighters Try To Flee
By Worthy News’ George Whitten and Stefan J. Bos
JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Israel faced multiple attacks Saturday, with Hamas firing rockets from the wartorn Gaza Strip while Hezbollah in Lebanon joined by launching its rockets, including a new powerful missile, several sources confirmed.
The strikes prompted a response with Israel’s new Arrow air defense system shooting down a Hamas long-range missile launched from Gaza over the Negev desert, the army said.
It was the first Arrow interception over Israeli territory since the war began, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
Elsewhere, the IDF said it struck “Hezbollah terror cells” along with a Hezbollah observation post in Lebanon. The Israeli military added that the strikes were in response to Hezbollah’s recent attempt to fire from Lebanon into Israel.
An accompanying video appeared to confirm the IDF strike
However, Israel also faced setbacks, with Israeli sources noticing that Hezbollah used a “powerful missile” that hadn’t been used previously.
HEZBOLLAH ROCKETS
The rocket reportedly hit an Israeli position across the border, opposite the southern Lebanese villages of Ayta ash Shab and Rmaych. It was unclear what was struck by the missile and how much damage it caused.
Hezbollah also fired several other rockets from Lebanon earlier, but those missiles fell short, an IDF spokesperson said.
The Israel Aerospace Industry was quick to congratulate the IDF on “the successful operational interception of a long-range ballistic missile” from Gaza with the Arrow missile defense system.
“Arrow is the most advanced air defense system of its kind in the world to intercept ballistic missiles in space, outside the atmosphere,” the firm claimed.
Yet, with fighters firing rockets from Gaza, Lebanon, and recently Yemen, concerns remain that Israel’s defense services may become overwhelmed by incoming missiles and drones.
Israel says, however, it is strong enough to fight on multiple fronts. It has rejected a ceasefire despite international pressure after the Hamas-run health ministry said 9,000 people have died since Israel launched its attacks in Gaza.
‘HAMAS TERRORISTS’
Israel said it only responded to “Hamas terrorists “ who murdered men, women, and children, including babies and toddlers, on October 7.
Fighting continued in Gaza on Saturday, prompting Arab countries to demand an “immediate ceasefire” in the Palestinian enclave of 2.3 million people.
However, the US agreed with Israel that an immediate truce “would allow Hamas to regroup.”
There were already reports Saturday that Hamas was attempting to sneak its fighters out of the Gaza Strip while evacuating civilians.
U.S. and border officials confirmed that wounded Hamas combatants were “quietly placed” on evacuation lists alongside injured Palestinian civilians.
However, Israel refused to allow these wounded Palestinians to be evacuated to Egyptian hospitals, a border official said.
SUSPENDING EVACUATIONS
In response, Gaza’s Hamas government suspended the evacuation of foreign passport holders to Egypt on Saturday, Worthy News learned.
A senior U.S. official said Hamas agreed to let foreign nationals evacuate on condition that a list of injured Palestinians could also depart.
“But about one third” of the people on the list were members of Hamas, the official said. “So it was just unacceptable to Egypt, to us, to Israel,” the official added in published remarks.
As fighting intensified, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met leaders from Lebanon, Qatar, and Jordan in Amman – as he pushed for “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting.
He spoke with them after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there would be “no temporary ceasefire” with Hamas in Gaza until all Israeli hostages are released. It was believed that these countries could pressure Hamas to free hostages.
Earlier, a U.S. envoy said 350,000-400,000 people remain in northern Gaza despite Israel warning civilians to leave. Israel’s government and military say many people are used as human shields by Hamas gunmen.
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