The strikes in southern Lebanon came a day after militants fired nearly three dozen rockets from there at Israel, wounding two people and causing some property damage. The Israeli military said it targeted installations of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, in southern Lebanon.

Several missiles fired by Israeli warplanes struck an open area near the Palestinian refugee camp of Rashidiyeh, close to the coastal southern city of Tyre.

Israeli strikes in Lebanon risk drawing the country’s Hezbollah militia into the fighting. The Iran-backed group, armed with thousands of rockets and missiles, holds sway over much of the south and is viewed by Israel as a bitter foe.

In recent years, Hezbollah has stayed out of other flare-ups related to al-Aqsa Mosque, which stands on a hilltop revered by Muslims and Jews. The Israeli military was careful to note in its announcement about Friday’s attack that it was targeting only sites linked to Palestinian militants.

Israeli airstrikes on Gaza resumed early on Friday, after militants fired more rockets from the blockaded territory, setting off air raid sirens in the Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon. The military said targets included the entry shaft to an underground network used for weapons manufacturing.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his security cabinet for a three-hour meeting late on Thursday. “Israel’s response, tonight and beyond, will extract a heavy price from our enemies,” he said in a statement.

Almost immediately, Palestinian militants in Gaza began firing rockets into southern Israel, setting off air raid sirens across the region.

No faction in Lebanon claimed responsibility for the salvo of rockets. A Lebanese security official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to media, said the country’s security forces believed the rockets were launched by a Lebanon-based Palestinian militant group, not by Hezbollah.

Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned the firing of rockets from Lebanon, adding that Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers were investigating and trying to find the perpetrators. Mikati said his government “categorically rejects any military escalation” and the use of Lebanese territories to stage acts that threaten stability.

Hezbollah has condemned the Israeli police raids in Jerusalem. Both Israel and Hezbollah have avoided an all-out conflict since a 34-day war in 2006 ended in a draw.

AP and Washington Post

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