Israel has responded to two rocket attacks launched from Lebanon, with airstrikes hitting an alleged drone storage center in Dahiyeh, a southern Beirut neighborhood housing Hezbollah’s headquarters. The strike was meant to serve as a message to both the Israeli public and Lebanon, signaling that Israel will no longer tolerate rocket fire without responding.
Defense Minister Israel Katz had issued threats earlier this week, stating that if there is no peace in Kiryat Shmona and the Galilee communities, there will be no peace in Beirut. However, many Israelis have grown accustomed to empty threats over the last few weeks and months.
The rockets launched from Lebanon marked the second such incident in six days, following a barrage of six rockets toward Metulla earlier in the week. The IDF responded with artillery fire and airstrikes in southern and eastern Lebanon.
A direct strike on Dahiyeh makes strategic sense, as it sends a clear message without weakening Lebanon’s central government. Israel has increased its military presence near the Lebanese border and is adopting a zero-tolerance policy toward rocket fire from Lebanon.
The US has backed Israel completely in the IDF strikes, with State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce saying that Israel is defending its people and interests by responding to rocket attacks from terrorists in Lebanon. Deputy Special Envoy for Middle East Peace Morgan Ortagus also called on Beirut to rid its territory of terrorist groups responsible for the rocket launches.
The strike was not just retaliation but a recalibration of the rules, highlighting Lebanon’s failure to assert complete control over its territory as much an Israeli problem as a Lebanese one.
Source: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-848190