In initial response, Hezbollah hits Israeli intel HQ with 62 rockets
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The Lebanese Islamic Resistance's operation comes as an initial response to the assassination of martyr Saleh al-Arouri and his martyred brothers.
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Hezbollah fighters hold the Resistance's flags and Lebanese flags, as they perform during a rally marking the ninth anniversary of the July 2006 victory, in Wadi al-Hujair, South Lebanon, on August 14, 2015. (AP)
The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah targeted at 7:50 am one of two Israeli occupation forces' Air Traffic Control Base in northern occupied Palestine, with a barrage of 62 rockets, as an initial response to the assassination of Palestinian Resistance leader, martyr Sheikh Saleh al-Arouri, and his brothers in the Southern Suburb of Beirut.
A statement released by the Resistance said its fighters accurately and successfully targeted the air control base located atop Mount Jarmaq ("Meron"), which constitutes the highest peak in the '48 occupied Palestine.
The Islamic Resistance in #Lebanon announced that its freedom fighters targeted the Israeli "Meron" Air Traffic Control Base with 62 rockets of various types, causing direct and confirmed hits.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) January 6, 2024
In a statement, the Islamic Resistance said this comes as part of the initial… pic.twitter.com/zM8JTijHCW
The attack was launched at exactly 7:50 am (local time) on Saturday morning, targeting the sole center for the management and monitoring of air traffic in northern occupied territories, the "Meron" Air Traffic Control Base. Hezbollah added that the occupation possesses no equivalent alternative to the bombarded facility.
The "Meron" Airbase organizes, coordinates, and manages all Air Force operations in the direction of Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, and Cyprus, as well as the northern areas of the eastern basin of the Mediterranean Sea. The base is also a main center for Israeli electronic warfare in the aforementioned directions, and it houses elite Israeli officers and soldiers.
Later, as part of the Resistance group's ongoing operations in support of Gaza, the Resistance fighters targeted the "Metulla" site and a gathering of Israeli occupation soldiers in the vicinity of the Hounin Barracks with appropriate weapons at 9:40 am and 9:55 am respectively, confirming direct hits in both.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah mourned its martyr Mustafa Hassan Saad - Abu Hassan Nour - originating from Bint Jbeil and a resident of the town of Burj al-Shamali in southern Lebanon, who rose as a martyr on the path to al-Quds.
Swift, calculated response
The Resistance faction's swift and calculated response to "Israel's" assassination of Hamas' Deputy Political Bureau Chief in the Southern Suburb of Beirut has been anticipated by supporters of the Axis of Resistance. Hezbollah sticks to its pledge promising further operations in a broader response to the horrific Israeli crime.
Speaking on two different occasions, on Wednesday and Friday, the Secretary General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, reiterated the Resistance's commitment to response to the "flagrant and dangerous violation," which he confirmed "will not go unanswered."
Read more: War with Hezbollah to be without constraints: Sayyed Nasrallah
Indeed, Hezbollah's initial unprecedented attack on the Air Traffic Control Base marks a first, in terms of the Resistance's confrontation with the Israeli occupation, hitting an integral and sensitive site of the Israeli Air Force. The only other Israeli Air Force Traffic Control Base is located around 250 km to the south, in al-Naqab Desert, dubbed "Mitzpe Ramon" Airbase, as revealed in the statement.
Importantly, Saturday's statement stressed that the operation was only an initial response to the martyr al-Arouri's assassination, promising further actions against the occupation. Sayyed Nasrallah had underlined the impact of the treacherous assassination on the military, security, and political level, stressing the significance of the site of the aggression, the Southern Suburb of Beirut.
In this context, the Lebanese Resistance leader emphasized that an encompassing response would be spurred by the assassination and the flagrant security violation in the Southern Suburb, which had not experienced an Israeli strike since 2006.
Sirens go off all over northern Palestine
Earlier on Saturday, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that a large salvo of rockets was launched from Lebanon toward the occupied upper al-Jalil, indicating that emergency sirens went off across all northern occupied territories.
Our correspondent also revealed that the rocket attack consisted of different types of rockets, as was later confirmed in Hezbollah's statement.
Israeli media outlets confirmed that drones and rockets were launched from Lebanon targeting an intelligence site of the Israeli military in "Meron". Alarm sirens sounded in more than 90 settlements in the region, the Israeli Army Radio announced.
Simultaneously, our correspondent in South Lebanon reported that the occupation launched an airstrike targeting the town of Ayta al-Shaab and a drone struck the outskirts of the town of Yaroun.
He also mentioned that Israeli artillery shelled the western outskirts of the towns of al-Teereh and Rsheif, in addition to empty areas between Blida and Aitaroun.
Read next: Who is Saleh al-Arouri; Hamas Resistance leader killed by 'Israel'?
