Withering Hezbollah rocket fire on Israel’s north kills one, wounds at least 10 Israelis

One man was killed and at least 10 more Israelis were wounded on Saturday amid withering, constant rocket fire and drone launches by Hezbollah that targeted towns across northern Israel.

Alexei Popov, 51, from Kiryat Chaim, sustained critical injuries and later died after being hit by shrapnel while crouching near his car. He had stopped while driving on the road near Akko and exited his car, following the instructions of the Home Front Command.

Another 28-year-old was in light-to-moderate condition after also being hit by shrapnel when a rocket hit a home in Kiryat Ata, Magen David Adom said. Another two persons were lightly injured in the same explosion.

Four others were wounded, including a man in moderate condition, in another rocket explosion in the western Galilee. In Shlomi, a house was directly hit.

The most prominent site targeted during Saturday's assault was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence in the coastal town of Caesarea, which according to the news outlet Axios was hit by a drone.

“The prime minister and his wife were not at the residence at the time of the attack and there were no casualties,” Netanyahu’s spokesman said. The IDF stated that three drones were launched in the attack, two of which were shot down by helicopters.

The attack came after Hezbollah had announced a “new phase” in its attacks in the wake of the elimination of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on Friday.

Since Friday evening, Hezbollah has fired well over 100 rockets and drones at Israeli towns.

Today, Hezbollah fired barrages of rockets, and this is what’s left of a home that was directly hit.

Hezbollah fires rockets indiscriminately, and this is the result: pic.twitter.com/uSRNfr7bnP

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 19, 2024

Intense attacks began Friday evening, in which a barrage of several rockets hit the area of Meron before 20 more rockets were fired at Safed and Rosh Pina shortly before midnight. Early the next morning, a drone probably fired from Iraq crashed near the town of Merom Golan on the Golan Heights.

Hours later, across the Haifa Bay, Carmel Mountain, and Wadi Ara regions in northern Israel, several alarms were activated within a short time frame after a single rocket or missile and several drones were launched.

Towns along the bay, as well as further north in the western Galilee were targeted again shortly after, at first by a volley of some 20 rockets, and then another 35 rockets. 30 more rockets were fired at the areas of Zar’it and Shtula, as well as Safed and nearby towns a short time after.

Meanwhile, the IDF continued its slow advance across southern Lebanon, systematically destroying Hezbollah’s infrastructure close to the border. On Saturday, the IDF said that an officer in the 188th Armored Brigade was seriously wounded by a drone strike during the fighting in southern Lebanon.

מטוסי קרב תקפו לפני זמן קצר, בהכוונה מודיעינית מדויקת של אגף המודיעין, מספר מחסני אמצעי לחימה ומפקדה של מטה המודיעין של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בדאחייה שבביירות.

טרם התקיפה ננקטו צעדים רבים על מנת לצמצם את הסיכוי לפגיעה באזרחים, הכוללים אזהרות מקדימות לאוכלוסייה באזור.

תקיפה זו… pic.twitter.com/GOlEUoLv9J

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) October 19, 2024

IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi announced Friday that the Israeli military has eliminated at least 1,500 Hezbollah terrorists since the start of the IDF’s ground operation in Lebanon.

Saturday evening, the Israeli military also announced fresh strikes in the Lebanese capital, targeting munitions warehouses and an intelligence headquarters of Hezbollah in Beirut’s Dahiyeh district.

“Before the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians, including advance warnings to the population in the area,” the army said.

“This attack is another part of the ongoing effort to damage Hezbollah’s munitions warehouses and production sites in the Beirut area, which are located in the heart of the civilian population.”

Meanwhile, soldiers of the 91st Division located and destroyed a central underground complex of the Radwan Force using over 100 tons of explosives.

The compound contained a weapons storage room, scooters, living quarters, ammunition, and more.

Dozens of weapons were found there, including mines, anti-tank missiles, anti-aircraft missile launchers, grenades, RPG launchers, machine guns, Kalashnikov rifles, ammunition, and means of communication for guidance and observation.

During the operation, the fighters located and destroyed three other underground compounds. Overall, they located and destroyed over 50 shafts located in mosques, schools, and other civilian buildings.

In addition, they located a munitions warehouse with hundreds of weapons, destroyed dozens of terrorist buildings, and eliminated many terrorists.

On Friday, the IDF said an airstrike killed the deputy commander of Hezbollah’s Bint Jbeil unit. Israeli troops continue to find massive amounts of weapons and ammunition in southern Lebanese villages, as well as in combat positions built in areas heavily overgrown with thick brush.

In what the IDF called its deepest operation in Lebanese territory so far, soldiers of the 98th Division captured and destroyed a large command post and an observation headquarters overlooking the towns of Israel’s Upper Galilee.