IAF strikes 40 targets in Lebanon

In addition, the army attacked dozens of access routes and bridges in order to disrupt the movement of Hizbullah activists in south Lebanon. These strikes were accompanied by an ongoing fire of artillery shells at rocket launching sites along the Israel-Lebanon border.

The IDF has asked hundreds of residents in south Lebanon to immediately leave their homes. According to new agencies reports, forces were preparing for a ground invasion of the area. According to the report, senior IDF officials have concluded that only a ground invasion would guarantee the withdrawal of Hizbullah forces from the area.

The agencies also reported that senior Israeli government officials met Thursday night in order to determine the extent of the ground operation. After the meeting, officials said that Israel would not stop operating until Hizbullah withdraws 30 kilometers north of the borderline. The goal is to create a new buffer zone, the dimensions of which will be defined again, for the first time in 18 years.

The signs of escalation were also manifested in a speech by UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan, who warned of a humanitarian crisis in Lebanon due to the ongoing fighting.

After a day of relative calm, with the firing of lone rockets at Carmiel, Tiberias, and other areas in the Galilee, sirens went off again on Thursday afternoon in the Upper Galilee area.

Rockets fell near one of the kibbutzim in the Mount Meron district in the Galilee. The rockets exploded in open territory and there were no reports of injuries or damage.

Shortly after 7 p.m. the IDF said Hizbullah fired four rocket barrages at open fields in the Upper Galilee; two barrages were fired toward Rosh Pina and the Mount Meron area; no injuries or damage were reported.

15 Israelis killed so far

At 10 p.m. the siren went off in the Western Galilee region, and a short while later four rockets landed in open fields near Rosh Pina. Again no injuries or damage were reported.

On Thursday afternoon, at around 1 p.m., an air raid siren was heard in Haifa. No rocket attacks took place on populated areas however, and some rockets may have fallen on open territory.

Some Haifa residents told Ynet they heard explosions in the city before the siren went off.

Sirens also tore through the areas of Nahariya, Akko, and all of the Western Galilee communities, and residents were told to enter bomb shelters.

On Thursday morning, Haifa residents awoke to the sounds of sirens, but no rocket landed in the area. Several hours later, rockets landed in other places on the northern border. No injuries were reported.

The rocket fire has so far claimed the lives of 15 Israeli civilians.