FALSE ALARM
Hostile aircraft did not soar into Israel from Lebanon as fears of ‘second front’ opening in war ruled out
HOSTILE aircraft that soared into Israel today did not come from Lebanon, as the IDF rules out fears a second front had opened in the war.
Israeli citizens had previously been urged to shelter amid fears of a "large-scale attack" but an IDF spokesperson has now said air raid alerts may have malfunctioned.
3
3
The Israeli military has now clarified a rocket fired into the country earlier came from Gaza, not Lebanon.
There were previously unconfirmed reports up to 20 drones and a number of paragliders crossed the border Wednesday evening.
It was not clear at the time who was responsible, but Lebanon's Hezbollah terror group and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group had both previously fired on IDF forces.
Both groups are also known to have drones and gliders.
READ MORE ON ISRAEL HAMAS WAR
The IDF confirmed the attack but did not announce any possible casualties.
An adviser to Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said the country was planning and prepared for a two-front war after the attack.
Hezbollah had fired missiles at Israeli troops earlier on Wednesday, claiming to have killed and wounded soldiers.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group (PIJ) also pledged their support to Hamas following their assault on Israel and vowed to join in.
Most read in The Sun
They also claimed responsibility for a raid at the Lebanon border on Monday.
Israeli forces said their soldiers killed at least two gunmen who crossed the border in the ambush.
A spokesperson for the militant group said: “We declare our responsibility for the operation that was carried out this afternoon in southern Lebanon on the border with occupied Palestine, which led to injuries among Israeli soldiers."
It comes amid days of airstrikes and bloody assaults after Hamas terrorists stormed across the border and killed hundreds in a bloody massacre.
The Israeli army previously shelled the area in southern Lebanon from which the attack was launched.
Mark Regev, a senior adviser to Netanyahu, told Sky News Israel has been "concerned for some time" that Hezbollah could "escalate the situation".
"We don't want to see an escalation in the north, but if a two front war is forced upon us, we won't be caught be surprise. We are prepared, we are ready and we will prevail," he said.
"It is not easy, but no war is ever easy. We have been planning for the possibility... and we can fight, if need be, a two-front war."
Residents in the Galilee and Golan Heights as well as the Haifa area were told to shelter "until further notice" fearing a "large-scale attack".
It comes as...
- Israeli troops are massing on the border with Gaza ready to 'execute' as 300,000 ready for a ground invasion
- Horrific details continue to emerge after Hamas terrorists' mass slaughter of Israeli civilians over the weekend
- Babies and young children were reportedly slain, with some beheaded, in the kibbutz of Kfar Aza
- 1,200 people have been killed in Israel - while the death toll in Gaza hit 1,055
- Some 17 Brits are feared to be either dead or missing across Israel and Gaza
- A British Airways flight to Tel Aviv was forced to turn back due to Hamas's rockets
- Strikes on Gaza continue - with reports of rockets also being fired into Israel from Lebanon and Syria
- Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu dubbed Hamas 'worse than ISIS' in a phone call with US President Joe Biden
- Families are still desperately waiting for news on hostages captured by Hamas - including tattoo artist Shani Louk
- Netanyahu has formed an emergency government with opposition leader
More than 2,000 people have been killed since Hamas terrorists staged a surprise assault on Israel on Saturday, including at least 17 Brits killed or missing.
And Israel has promised an even more punishing escalation as dozens of fighter jets hammered neighbourhood after neighbourhood overnight.
Forces unleashed 250 airstrikes in just one hour early on Wednesday, Fox News reported.
The IDF said the area hit is a "Nest of Terror" used by Hamas militants to launch attacks against Israel.
Dozens of buildings were reduced to rubble - leaving unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris as residents scrambled to find safety.
Read More on The Sun
Meanwhile, Israel has called up an unprecedented 300,000 reservists.
Israel's military has insisted hundreds of troops massed near the Gaza border are "ready to execute the mission we have been given".
3
Topics