About 35 rockets were fired at the northern city of Kiryat Shmona in a series of barrages from Lebanon Friday evening, causing extensive brushfires. The city reported significant damage to property and infrastructure, with dozens of homes and vehicles affected.
Ten firefighting teams from the Galil-Golan station, assisted by crews from other stations in the northern district, are working to extinguish two major fires in open areas.
Large fires in the Galilee following rocket barrages from Lebanon
"The firefighters are working tirelessly to contain the flames along the residential line, while fire alarms continuously sound in the area. The combination of weather conditions and heavy barrages has led to multiple fire sites—a scenario we were prepared for and responded to with reinforced efforts,” Fire and Rescue Services North District Commander Assistant Deputy Fire Commissioner Yair Elkayam.
Of the rockets fired at Kiryat Shmona, about 15 were intercepted, causing damages in the area from direct hits. Fires broke out near Highway 90 and close to Kiryat Shmona.
Shlomi, 46, a Kiryat Shmona resident who returned to the city this week while his family stayed in Eilat, reported: "This week, there was a significant escalation in Kiryat Shmona with continuous sirens. And this evening, the entire ridge from Kach Junction to the entrance of Kiryat Shmona is ablaze due to rocket impacts. It's time they realize that the north and Kiryat Shmona are in intense warfare, and there is no avoiding an intensification of IDF strikes. Kiryat Shmona before October 7 and Kiryat Shmona today are regrettably not the same city."
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Large fires in the Galilee following rocket barrages from Lebanon
(Photo: EPA/ATEF SAFADI)
The IDF said Friday night it completed a series of strikes on terror targets in the areas of Odaisseh, Khiam, Rab El Thalathine, Deir Siriane, Ayta ash Shab and Mhaibib in southern Lebanon. As part of the strikes, Israeli fighter jets dismantled five Hezbollah military structures, as well as an additional Hezbollah military launch post, from which launches that crossed into northern Israel were fired, the army said.
Earlier, Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar reported a series of attacks on the southern Lebanese villages of Kfarkela, Khiam, Mays al-Jabal, Deir Siriane, Taybeh, Ayta ash Shab and Rab El Thalathine.
Northern Israel has been at war for seven months, with the conflict intensifying over the past week. Three soldiers were killed in combat this week, and the IDF struck nearly 100 targets, eliminating Hezbollah operatives, but the shelling continues.
On Monday, Master Sergeant (res.) Dan Kamkagi and Master Sergeant (res.) Nahman Natan Hertz were killed by a suicide drone. On Tuesday, incessant sirens were heard across the northern Galilee region. On Wednesday, Staff Sergeant Haim Sabach was killed by a mortar shell. On Thursday, Hezbollah simultaneously attacked the Upper and Western Galilee.