OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — UN peacekeepers said Monday they
were investigating overnight rocket fire from
Lebanon into Israel that prompted
Israel to fire dozens of artillery shells in response.
اضافة اعلان
Israel forces said they responded with artillery fire to a
"projectile launched from Lebanon", which crashed into an open field
near a kibbutz.
There were no reports of casualties or damage.
The
UN Interim Force in Lebanon said that, after detecting a
"rocket being launched from south Lebanon towards Israel", its
commander made contact with both sides "to urge restraint".
"Nonetheless, the (Israeli forces) fired back several
dozen shells into Lebanon,"
UNIFIL said in a statement, adding that it had
begun "an investigation to determine the facts".
Lebanon's National News Agency said the rocket fire was
carried out by unidentified groups and that Lebanese forces had deployed to the
area, with calm restored before sunrise.
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz called on Lebanon's
government "to take responsibility for what happens on its
territory".
"If terrorism and violence continue, we know how to use
the necessary force against the right targets."
Lebanon and Israel are technically in a state of war.
Israel and
Hezbollah exchanged fire across the heavily
guarded border last summer.
Israel launched a devastating war on Lebanon in 2006 after
Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers.
The 34-day conflict killed 1,200 people in Lebanon, mostly
civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers.
It ended with a UN-backed ceasefire that saw the Lebanese
army deploy in border areas.
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