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Evacuation on Israel’s northern border begins

The Cradle | October 20, 2023

Israel has begun evacuating the settlement of Kiryat Shmona, the military said on 20 October, coming as part of previously announced plans to empty out the settlements on the northern Israeli border with Lebanon. 

“The National Emergency Authority (NAE) in the Ministry of Defense and the IDF announce the activation of a plan to evacuate the residents of Kiryat Shmona to state-funded guest houses,” the Israeli army said. 

“The implementation of the program was approved by the Minister of Defense, Yoav Galant. The Northern Command informed the mayor of the decision a short time ago,” the statement added. 

Kiryat Shmona has around 22,000 settlers residing in it.

Four days ago, Tel Aviv announced plans to evacuate around two dozen settlements on the border with Lebanon over fears that a new front could open up against it. Intense crossfire between Israel and Hezbollah continues to escalate, with the resistance group having carried out numerous successful strikes against Israeli forces since 7 October.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said during a meeting with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, on 19 October that “Israel is not interested in another military operation in the north, but it will know how to deal on any front in order to protect its citizens.” 

Following the announcement on Friday, Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said that evacuating Kiryat Shmona, which lies around five kilometers south of Israel’s border with Lebanon, “allows the expansion of operational work against Hezbollah.”

The exchange of fire between Israeli forces and the Lebanese resistance has been a daily occurrence since the start of Israel’s ongoing war against the Gaza Strip. 

Hezbollah announced on Friday that it targeted several sites in two Israeli-occupied Lebanese border areas, the Shebaa Farms and the Kfar Shuba hills.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army continued its shelling of Lebanese border villages. It also announced targeting Hezbollah’s infrastructure the night before. 

On 19 October, a barrage of rockets was fired from Lebanon into the northern Israeli settlements, damaging a building and causing injuries in Kiryat Shmona. 

Israeli media said the rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona “appeared to be the most serious assault on the city since 2006,” when Hezbollah defeated Israeli forces after a 33-day war. 

It remains unclear who launched the rockets, as Palestinian groups also operate in the south of Lebanon, and have fired rockets towards Israel’s north since the fighting erupted.

The tense border situation has raised concerns that Hezbollah may fully enter the war between the Gaza resistance and Israel. Observers believe that a ground invasion into the Gaza Strip and an Israeli attempt to dismantle the resistance completely may instigate the full involvement of the Lebanese resistance and the rest of the Resistance Axis.

October 20, 2023 - Posted by | Illegal Occupation | , , ,

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