VIDEO - North under rocket attack: Hizbullah on Thursday evening fired mortar shells at several communities in the Galilee panhandle close to the border fence. There were no reports of injuries.
Dozens of rockets landed earlier in the Upper Galilee and Western Galilee communities.
The last barrage was at around 7:20 p.m. in Kiryat Shmona, which was hit by three rockets. Three people who were hurt by shrapnel arrived at the city's emergency room. Another 16 suffered from shock.
Some 15 people who sustained serious wounds were evacuated to the Ziv Medical Center in Safed, including 10 soldiers who were hurt during the fighting on the northern border.
Earlier, a rocket hit a factory in the city. There were no reports of injuries.
The previous barrages hit Kiryat Shmona, Carmiel, Nahariya and the Rosh Pina area. Eight people were hut by shrapnel since Thursday morning, and 30 suffered from shock.
Some 80 rockets fell in the north from the morning hours by 7:20 p.m. Thursday – 22 in Kiryat Shmona, 16 in Maalot, 14 in Rosh Pina and the surrounding areas, 12 in Nahariya, eight in Carmiel and eight in Safed.
Eight rockets landed in Tiberias. There were no reports of injuries. Three houses were hit in Carmiel, and also in Nahariya three buildings were directly hit by rockets, one of them located on a street that was already hit twice since the fighting began.
Sirens were heard in many northern communities. An empty building was hit in Kiryat Shmona and two cars caught fire. A fire also broke out near a factory in Kiryat Shmona and firefighters were attempting to put it out.
Yair Elkayam, spokesman for the Upper Galilee firefighting services, said that "about 10 firefighting crews assisted by two cranes are now working to prevent the fire from spreading. It was caused by the fall of a Katyusha barrage at a factory specializing in dealing with dangerous substances. Apart from that, two crews are working on putting out the fire which broke out next to one of the Upper Galilee kibbutzim."
Firefighters work to put out fire in Kiryat Shmona factory (Photo: Baruch Grosswald)
Since the onset of the fighting in the northern border, 16 days ago, firefighters have dealt with more than 420 fires, some of which caused damage to nature reserves, groves, apartment buildings and vehicles that caught fire.
Thursday morning: 26 rockets hit North
Dozens of rockets fell in the entire Galilee area by Thursday afternoon, causing one person to sustain light injuries.
As early as 7:45 a.m. Hizbullah fired two rocket barrages which landed in an open area near Maalot and Shlomi. No one was wounded and no damage was caused. Shortly thereafter, seven rockets hit the Safed area and sparked fires in a forest adjacent to the town.
Child injured in Nahariya (Photo: Reuters)
Two firefighting crews and two light planes were called to the scene to extinguish the flames and prevent the fire from spreading.
At around 10:00 a.m. the blare of the sirens was heard once again in western Galilee communities and in Carmiel. Minutes later, rockets hit open areas, without incurring casualties. Explosions were heard in Carmiel as well, but no injuries were reported.
About half an hour later, a third barrage hit Maalot and Safed, and at 11:00 a.m. rockets pounded the Rosh Pina area. No one was wounded in the latest attacks.
Since the onset of the fighting in Israel's north, over 1,420 rockets landed in Israeli territory, 19 civilians were killed and 1,262 people have been wounded. Some 46 injured are still hospitalized across the north, a spokesperson for the police's Northern District reported. Many of the injured were treated for shock.
First published: 16:16, 07.27.6