'Kiryat Shmona' mayor urges settlers to leave over Hezbollah response
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The mayor of the northern Israeli settlement of "Kiryat Shmona" urges his settlers to leave amid concerns about a Hezbollah response over the killing of a senior Hamas official.
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Israeli occupation police inspect the scene of a rocket attack from Lebanon in 'Kiryat Shmona', northern occupied Palestine, November 2, 2023 (AP)
The northern Israeli settlement of "Kiryat Shmona" has long been aware of the threat of rocket launches from Lebanon; however, in recent months, the continuous threat to it has led to the evacuation of most of its settlers, a Yedioth Ahronoth report revealed on Wednesday.
Mayor Avihai Stern urged all settlers to evacuate, expressing concern about Hezbollah's potential response to Hamas top official Saleh al-Arouri's assassination.
The Deputy Chief of the Political Bureau of the Hamas movement, Saleh al-Arouri, was martyred on Tuesday evening, as a result of an attack that targeted the Southern Suburb of Beirut.
Lebanon's National News Agency reported that "an Israeli drone targeted an office of the Hamas movement in Msharafieh" while "ambulances reached the area to transport casualties."
Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that an Israeli drone targeted the building with three missiles, resulting in the martyrdom of six individuals.
"I believe that since October 7, we have been engaged in a battle: feeling and hearing it distinctly... Unfortunately, there is damage to both property and lives," Stern told Ynet.
"I hear various euphemisms, almost like a war, a war of attrition, and all sorts of different definitions... Comrades, this is war... There is no other definition for the situation, and I don't know what escalation is," the Israeli mayor added.
Growing dissatisfaction
"As someone who grew up in Kiryat Shmona, and due to our knowledge of our enemies, I am certain that there will be a response to yesterday's liquidation," he underlined.
Stern underlined that he had been urging northern settlers to evacuate even before the central Israeli regime ordered them to do so. He reiterated his call for the Israeli settlers and anyone coming to the northern settlements to comply with his instructions and leave "Kiryat Shmona".
Stern criticized in December how the Israeli occupation's government is dealing with the increasingly worsening situation on the Lebanese border area with the Islamic Resitance's daily operations.
Speaking to Israeli Channel 13 news, Stern said the North feels that "the destructive containment policy seen prior to October 7 is still ongoing today."
"We are under fire daily and we continue to record injuries daily. Yesterday, a soldier in the reserve brigade was killed; we are recording injuries and fatalities daily," Stern stressed.
The mayor of the northern Israeli settlement added: "The answer must be clear; Hezbollah and Hamas are one and the same. If they decided that to get rid of the threat on the southern border they must destroy Hamas, I do not see why they did not make the same decision for the northern border."
Decision-making in Hezbollah's hands
In a related context, the head of the Israeli occupation Regional Council in Upper al-Jalil, Giora Zaltz, commented on the fact that Islamic Resistance operations continue in the direction of northern occupied Palestine, criticizing the conduct of Benjamin Netanyahu's government.
In an interview for Israeli Radio 103FM, Zaltz said, “We are keeping the keys with (Sayyed Hassan) Nasrallah and not with us, and he does as he sees fit,” referring to the intensity of the operations on the Lebanese-Palestinian border.
Israeli media previously reported that the Israeli occupation authorities evacuated new settlements in northern occupied Palestine, highlighting that these settlements had not been evacuated since 1948.
Israeli Channel 13 correspondent, Shlomi Eldar, also emphasized that Israeli settlements such as "Metulla, Shtula, Kiryat Shmona, and others adjacent to the border with Lebanon are within the range of Hezbollah's missiles all the time."
"Hezbollah is present near the border and has stepped up its anti-tank missile attacks," Eldar mentioned, stressing that the attacks against Israeli sites have become "more accurate and dangerous."
