The Kiryat Shmona settlement in occupied North Palestine has become the largest settlement to be abandoned since October 7, 2023, a report by the Jerusalem Post showed. 

The settlement was described as a "ghost town" by the Israeli newspaper amid Hezbolla's continuous military operations targeting northern settlements in support of Gaza and in response to Israeli aggression against Lebanon. 

According to JP, emergency service workers have all evacuated the settlement, while traffic remains extremely light, prompting the municipality to stop operating traffic signals. Only one supermarket remains open, but it closes its doors at noon. Wolves and wild animals reportedly roam the settlement's roads at night.

The newspaper emphasized that the majority of settlers who fled Kiryat Shmona have decided not to return, noting that the longer the state of uncertainty regarding escalation with Lebanon persists, the more likely it is for them to permanently relocate.

It was revealed that due to daily rocket launches from Lebanon, the occupation government evacuated 43 settlements located within five kilometers of the Mediterranean Sea to the west, relocating settlers to the Golan Heights to the east, which allegedly led to the "establishment of a security zone inside Israel along the entire northern border."

Over 60,000 settlers abandoned the north and are currently staying in hotels, rentals, or with relatives or friends. 

Moreover, Israeli officials held talks with mayors in the north to postpone the start of the academic school year, which was set for September 1, due to constant political tensions and concerns of drastic escalations.

The head of the Metula settlement, David Azoulay, said that "every two days a shell falls on one of the houses, and the anti-tank missiles, particularly the Cornet missiles, are especially lethal," noting that out of 600 settlement units, 130 had been damaged, with some completely destroyed.

Hezbollah strikes deep into occupied territories

The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah confirmed Tuesday that it engaged the headquarters of two Israeli military units in southern occupied Palestine in response to the assassination of one of its fighters in a southern Lebanese town earlier.

In a statement, Hezbollah said its Resistance fighters launched a combined aerial attack using diversionary and suicide drones and engaged the headquarters of the Golani Brigade and the Egoz Unit 621 at Shraga barracks north of the occupied city of Akka, hitting its targets accurately.

Reuters highlighted that this was Hezbollah's "deepest attack" into occupied Palestinian territory since the start of the Gaza war on October 7.

The Lebanese Resistance group mentioned that the operation came in response to the Israeli aggression that targeted the town of Adloun and the assassination of one of its fighters.

⚡️⭕️ #Lebanon, Hezbollah military media publishes :

"200 days of steadfastness and heroism" pic.twitter.com/nFa5Byamv7

— Middle East Observer (@ME_Observer_) April 23, 2024