Israel shells Lebanon as Gaza death toll reaches 213

BEIRUT: The Israeli army said it launched artillery towards Lebanon on Monday in response to rocket fire from the neighbouring country that failed to hit the Jewish state.

“Six failed launch attempts were identified from Lebanon that did not cross into Israeli territory,” the army said in a statement.

“Artillery forces fired toward the sources of the launches.” A Lebanese military source told AFP three rockets had been fired from Southern Lebanon towards Israel.

“Three Grad-type rockets were fired from the Shebaa Farms area,” not far from the Israeli border, the Lebanese military source said.

In another incident, five people protesting on the Lebanon-Israel border against air strikes in Gaza were wounded Tuesday by tear gas cannisters and smoke bombs fired by Israeli forces, Lebanese state media said.

“A number of demonstrators climbed a concrete border fence, raised Hezbollah flags and banners, and threw stones,” the official National News Agency reported.

“Israeli forces fired tear gas and smoke bombs, leaving five people wounded.”

NNA did not say if those injured were Lebanese citizens or Palestinian refugees.

Since last week, a series of protests along Lebanon´s frontier have been held against Israel´s air campaign on Gaza, a densely populated Palestinian enclave.

That air assault has killed 213 Palestinians, according to Gaza´s health ministry, while 12 have been killed on the Israeli side by thousands of rockets fired at the Jewish state from inside Gaza.

A Lebanese demonstrator was killed by Israeli fire on Friday after he tried to cross the border fence into northern Israel. Several others have been wounded in similar incidents over the past week which came amid heightened tensions along the border.

On Monday, the Israeli army said it launched artillery fire towards Lebanon in response to rocket fire from the neighbouring country that failed to hit the Jewish state.

The Lebanese army on Tuesday said that 10 shells and seven flare bombs had been fired by Israel into south Lebanon in response to the rocket attack — which no group has yet claimed.

The Lebanese army said it seized seven rocket launchers — six unloaded and one still carrying a rocket — outside the southern village of al-Habariyya as part of a probe into who is responsible for the rocket fire.

Last Thursday, three rockets were also fired from southern Lebanon near the Palestinian refugee camp of Rashidiyeh toward Israel. Israel´s army said those rockets landed in the sea.

Hezbollah, Israel´s arch nemesis, has yet to comment on either Thursday´s or Monday´s rocket attack.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden expressed his support for a ceasefire in the ongoing armed conflict between Israel and the Palestinians during a telephone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said in a readout of the call.

“The president expressed his support for a ceasefire and discussed US engagement with Egypt and other partners towards that end,” the White House said.

This is the first time that Biden has publicly taken a position favouring a ceasefire after having been pressured by fellow Democratic party lawmakers and officials in other countries to play a more active role in the Middle East crisis. The EU has also called for a ceasefire in the conflict between Hamas and Israel.