Transcript of Dozens of rockets fired into Israel from Lebanon, IDF says | BBC News

Let's go back now to our top story in the Middle East, where Hezbollah says it's fired dozens of missiles into Israel in retaliation for days of repeated cross-border attacks. Israel has imposed restrictions on civilian gatherings in the north of the country up to the Lebanon border. It said that the order came in anticipation of retaliatory attacks by Hezbollah. This is after Israeli planes carried out fresh airstrikes on targets in Southern Lebanon. I think we can show you pictures now of Northern Israel This is a suburb. Is this Southern Lebanon? Sorry, we've got the wrong indicator there on the screen. But this is Northern Israel. This is the aftermath of an airstrike in Northern Israel in a suburb on the outskirts of Haifa, the city on the Coast there. This is towards the north, towards the Lebanese border. We have also had a statement from the IDF saying that they are currently striking Southern Lebanon, and they're hitting targets, and they're saying that those strikes are going to continue, and they're going to intensify. So a lot of exchange of fire this morning across the border between Israel and Lebanon. Let's speak now to Hugo Bachega and Paul Adams.

Hugo joins us from Beirut. Paul Adams from Jerusalem. To you first, Hugo, just talk us through what's going on in Southern Lebanon today.

Yeah, Lucy. So earlier today, the Hezbollah, which is this powerful militian political party based here in Lebanon, said he had carried out an initial response to that attack a few days ago, targeting pages and walkie-talkies used by the group, an attack widely believed to have been carried out by Israel. We've seen that there were dozens, according to the Israeli military, more than 100 rockets fired by Hezbollah in that attack. In response, we've seen that the Israeli military said it was carrying out strikes on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon. I think it was interesting that the Israeli military said it was striking positions across the country, suggesting that these attacks were happening not only in Southern Lebanon, where most of these Israeli attacks have happened. Now, obviously, the fear here, the speculation is that Israel may be planning a wider offensive against Hezbollah after almost a year of these cross-border attacks. We've seen that there were those explosions targeting the group's communication systems across the country. Then on Friday, there was an Israeli air strike that essentially decimated the military command of Hezbollah's main fighting units. So it's been a humiliating few days for Hezbollah. The group has vow to respond.

That was yesterday in Dakhir, which is Hezbollah's stronghold here in Southern Beirut. And people were telling us that they are going to resist despite those Israeli attacks. And the fear here is that Lebanon is being dragged into a conflict with Israel that is not in the country's interest, a conflict that could be devastating for this country.

Just explain, Hugo, because there has been exchange of fire across this border throughout the past year, hasn't there? Since that October the seventh attack. But this is more significant, isn't it? It's more intense today and yesterday, is it? Exactly.

And this obviously follows the decision by the Israeli government to add the return of displaced residents from communities in Northern Israel as a war go. And they say that these attacks are going to continue. They're going to intensify. Tens of thousands of residents have been displaced in Northern Israel because of these attacks that have been carried out by Hezbollah. So there is speculation that the Israeli military could even carry out a ground invasion of Southern Lebanon to try to create a buffer zone in the south of the country and push Hezbollah fighters away from the border. So we've seen that countries are urging citizens to leave Lebanon. There has been some diplomatic activity to try to de-escalate tensions. Hezbollah has been saying that these attacks are going to continue. They say that this campaign by the group is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, and they say that these attacks are going to continue unless there is a a ceasefire in Gaza. Now, we know that all efforts, recent efforts to try to reach a deal have failed. That was the main hope to try to de-escalate tensions here. And again, the fear is that we could be seeing the beginning of a wider Israeli offensive against the group.

Yes. Okay. Thank you very much, Hugo Bacheca, for us there in Beirut. Let's bring in Paul Adams for us now, who is in Jerusalem. And as we were talking to Hugo, we've been looking at these pictures, these images of this airstrike in its aftermath in Northern Israel. They had had these warnings people to stay at home, hadn't they? Or to not have these large gatherings. Presumably, a lot of people have left the area as well. Paul, are you hearing about any injuries or even deaths in the area?

There have been reports this morning of minor injuries, and we have certainly seen images of a couple of private homes that have been set on fire. Now, Hezbol We said that it had targeted an air base and a military-industrial complex. We haven't had any reports to suggest that either of those two things have actually happened. But certainly, the missile strikes this morning, the rocket attacks this morning, do seem to have been deeper into Israel than many of the previous Hezbollah strikes. There's something in excess of 8,000 rockets have already been fired in the course of the last better part of 12 months, with another hundred or so overnight, and some of those landing in the vicinity of Haifa, and also reports of simultaneous attacks coming from the east from Iraq, and possibly also from Yemen. So it does seem as though this latest wave of attacks may have been somewhat coordinated. As you say, the impact on the civilian population is considerable. Around 60,000 or so Israeli civilians have been away from their homes for the past 11 months. No additional evacuations ordered so far, but we did see yesterday the authorities closing all schools from Haifa North.

That is a huge area, and that is an indication of the level of threat that Israel still feels that Hezbolar poses, despite what the government here regards as having been an extraordinarily successful few days for Israel in its battle with Hezbolar.

And Hezbolar does have long-range missiles, doesn't it? And we're seeing these attacks, reportedly today, further into Israel than we have seen previously. Is that correct?

Yes. Look, we've had at various times over the past the last twelve months, moments when it seemed as though each side was upping the ante. This is another of those moments. As you say, Hasbalah have rockets capable of reaching pretty much anywhere in Israel. The fear, of course, is that at some point it might decide to try and target the center of the country, Tel Aviv, perhaps. That would mark a very, very significant escalation in the conflict. They will be watching the latest salvos, seeing where they're landing and trying to get a sense of how ambitious Hezbollah is. The conventional wisdom up to now remains that Hezbollah and their Iranian backers are not interested in an all-out war with Israel, a war that they would almost certainly lose, that would result almost certainly in Israel's occupation of Southern Lebanon and the destruction of that vast, potent missile arsenal. That is not an asset which Iran is willing to give up just for no good reason. At the moment, there is a sense that this is still within, somewhat within the parameters of what we have seen over the past 12 months, but teachering on the edge of something different.