Heavy Bombardment of Gaza as Israel and Hezbollah Trade Strikes

Hezbollah replied on Thursday to Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon with what the Israeli military called Hezbollah’s most serious rocket and drone assault in more than eight months of hostilities.

It was the second straight day of ramped-up attacks in a conflict that has raised fears of a full-fledged war, even as Israel continued to press its military offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

It was not immediately clear how many weapons Hezbollah, a powerful militia and political faction backed by Iran, launched into Israel on Thursday. But the group’s broadcaster, Al-Manar, reported that at one point, more than 100 were fired in a coordinated attack aimed at several Israeli military installations. The assault included a number of drones aimed at Israel’s northern military headquarters, Hezbollah said.

Israel’s military said in the afternoon that Hezbollah had sent more than 40 rockets across the border, but the barrage continued well into the evening. Hours later, Israel had not updated that number, but a military spokesman called it Hezbollah’s most serious attack since October. He did not immediately elaborate.

At least four people were injured in the assault on Thursday, according to Israel’s military and its emergency service, Magen David Adom. The military said in the afternoon that its air defenses had shot down many of the weapons fired up to that point, but some had penetrated.

The attacks ignited wildfires on both sides of the border, where more than 150,000 people have fled their homes because of the near-daily strikes by Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants.