West Asia: Hezbollah Hits Israel With Over 100 Missiles; Satellite Images Show Activities In Syrian Demilitarised Zone

Hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted for the first time that Israel was behind the massive pager and walkie-talkie attacks on Hezbollah in September, the Lebanon-based militant group launched hundreds of rockets into northern Israel on Monday. According to The Times Of Israel, over 165 rockets were fired, leaving seven people, including a one-year-old girl, hurt.

Taking it to X, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) posted a video of the aftermath of one such rocket strike. “Northern Israel Is Under Attack: We will continue to defend our civilians against Hezbollah's aggression”, IDF said.

The Lebanon-based militant outfit Hezbollah took the responsibility of the missile attack and said it targeted a ‘training base for the Paratroopers Brigade in the Karmiel settlement.’

This attack has been described as ‘one of the largest attacks amid the fighting’ on North Israel's Haifa. However, Israel's robust air defense technology intercepted most of the incoming missiles even though several towns were hit.

Lebanon pager blast: Netanyahu admits Israel's role

For the first time on Monday, Benjamin Netanyahu admitted that Israel was behind the pager and walkie-talkie attacks on Hezbollah in September that left at least 39 people dead and more than 3,000 injured, local media reports have said.

“The pager operation and the elimination of (Hezbollah leader Hassan) Nasrallah were carried out despite the opposition of senior officials in the defence establishment and those responsible for them in the political echelon,” The Times of Israel newspaper quoted Netanyahu as saying.

On September 16, thousands of pagers containing explosives exploded on their Hezbollah owners across Lebanon and parts of Syria on September 16

Within 24 hours since the deadly pager attack, several walkie-talkies and solar panels in Lebanon met the same fate as well on September 17, shocking the world at the level of Israeli intelligence's preparation in its war against Lebanon. 

Israel's military building in Syria's demilitarised zone

In a latest development in the politically unstable West Asia, recent high-definition satellite images suggested that Israel has begun a construction project along the so-called Alpha Line that separates the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria, according to The Associated Press. However, both the Israeli and the Syrian officials in Damascus declined to comment on the matter.

As per the United Nations, the Israeli troops have entered the demilitarized zone during the work which is being considered a violation of the cease-fire rules governing the area.

So far, there has been no report of any major violence along the Alpha Line, which outlines the demilitarised zone between Syria and Israeli-occupied territory that UN peacekeepers have patrolled since 1974.

High-resolution images taken on Novemnber 5 by Planet Labs PBC showed over 7.5 kilometers (4.6 miles) of construction along the Alpha Line, starting some 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) southeast of the Israeli-held Druze town of Majdal Shams, where a July rocket strike killed 12 children playing soccer.

The images appear to show a trench between two embankments, parts of which appear to have been laid with fresh asphalt. There also appears to be fencing running along it as well toward the Syrian side.

The construction follows a southeast route before heading due south along the Alpha Line, and then again cutting southeast. The images show excavators and other earth-moving equipment actively digging along the route, with more asphalt piled there. The area is also believed to be littered with unexploded ordnance and mines from decades of conflict.