On Sunday, following weeks of rising tensions, Hezbollah fired antitank missiles into northern Israel targeting army bases and vehicles near the border town of Avivim. In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it fired roughly 100 shells at Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
According to Hezbollah, the attack was in retaliation to an Israeli airstrike in Syria last month that killed at least two of its members. Israel allege that this strike aimed to thwart an Iranian plot to launch explosive-laden drones at Israeli territory.
The IDF claim that they suffered no injuries from the attack, however, Hezbollah has been quoted in local media suggesting their movement destroyed an Israeli tank, killing and injuring those on board.
Earlier this year, IDF revealed that it has exposed an established network of Hezbollah terror cells in border villages on the Syrian Golan Heights, which was gathering intelligence to prepare for attacks on Israel.
In February 2019, the UK Government proscribed Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation in its entirety, citing its “destabilising activities in the region” and commitment to “armed resistance to the State of Israel”.
