• Controversy Netanyahu stops controversial judicial reform after mass protests
  • Tension clash between Israel and Gaza militias in the wake of riots at Al Aqsa Mosque

The calm in northern Israel in the midst of the holiday of Passover was broken at noon on Thursday with a hail of shells from southern Lebanon in one of the worst attacks since the war with the Lebanese group Hezbollah in 2006. The Israeli defensive system intercepted 25 of the 34 projectiles while six managed to hit Israeli soil with a balance of two wounded. There are no deaths due to the action of the Iron Dome and the fact that for example a bank in the small town of Shlomi hit by a rocket was closed by Passover. Five hours later, three mortar shells hit the Israeli border town of Metula.


Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his mini-security cabinet tonight to study the response to an attack that the army said was the work of Palestinian groups Hamas or Islamic Jihad. "We are investigating whether Iran is also involved," military sources told EL MUNDO.


The security agencies, more aware of the militias of the Gaza Strip that launched 20 projectiles against the south of the country since the violent riots at the Al Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday night, now share their attention and alert with the northern front marked by renewed tension in the wake of the attack on March 13 that was linked to this group and Iran. Israeli retaliation for the heavy explosion at the Megiddo crossing caused by an armed infiltrator from Lebanon would have been done without signature and in the shadows with airstrikes against Hezbollah and Iranian targets in Syria.

On the authorship of the barrage of projectiles in the Galilee, the army confirmed the estimate of three security sources in Lebanon cited by Reuters. That is, it was not the immediate suspect, the powerful Hezbollah. The belief is that they were Palestinian armed factions motivated by what happened in Jerusalem. The pro-Iranian Lebanese group stood out although an attack of this magnitude can hardly be carried out in southern Lebanon without their knowledge. Coincidentally or not, it coincided with the visit to Beirut of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyah, aimed at strengthening the alliance with Hezbollah under the baton of Iran in the face of the common enemy. Following clashes between Israeli and Palestinian agents on the Esplanade of the Mosques that drew widespread condemnation in the Arab world, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned: "We will support the Palestinian people and the resistance factions in all steps they take to protect worshippers and Al Aqsa Mosque and deter the enemy."

Ultra-conservative coalition

Since the inauguration of his ultraconservative coalition more than 100 days ago after an election in which his promises on security in the face of the "weakness" of the previous government played an important role, Netanyahu faces strong criticism. Beyond the unprecedented internal crisis following the judicial reform project that finally suspended, Palestinian attacks continue, the number of rockets from Gaza against the south has increased considerably, the north suffers the biggest blow from Lebanon in many years and relations with the main ally, the US, are deteriorating. . All this under the feeling that Iran feels strong and takes more risks in its campaign against Israel either directly or through militias in the region.


Israel's deterrence capacity has weakened in recent months, according to military intelligence (Aman). Netanyahu's announcement to dismiss Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on March 26 for publicly calling for halting the judicial reform plan, alleging that the growing fracture harms national security, did not help. Netanyahu has suspended the dismissal but without fully guaranteeing its continuity, which has been frowned upon in the military leadership that met on Thursday to advise the cabinet, meeting for the first time since February, a harsh response but without causing an escalation either in Lebanon or in Gaza under Hamas control.

  • Iran
  • Israel
  • Hamas
  • Lebanon
  • Beirut
  • Syria
  • Gaza Strip
  • THE WORLD
  • Benjamin Netanyahu
  • Fernando Hierro
  • Attacks

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