Iran-Backed Hezbollah Claims It Fired 'Dozens' Of Rockets At Israeli Artillery Sites

<p><strong>New Delhi:</strong> The Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah said that it launched &ldquo;dozens of Katyusha rockets&rdquo; at Israeli artillery sites on Friday. This attack, it said, was in retaliation to the recent Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.</p> <p>Hezbollah targeted &ldquo;enemy artillery positions with dozens of Katyusha rockets&hellip;in response to the enemy&rsquo;s attacks on... southern villages and civilian homes,&rdquo; the militant group said in a statement, AFP reported.</p> <p>The Israeli army said &ldquo;approximately 40 launches were identified crossing from Lebanese territory, some of which were intercepted. No injuries were reported.&rdquo;</p> <p>Two Hezbollah drones that had crossed from Lebanon were intercepted earlier, the Israeli army added.</p> <p>Hezbollah and the Israeli military have been exchanging frequent cross-border fire since October 7 last year when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched assaults on southern Israel, leading to the conflict in Gaza.</p> <p>Lebanon's National News Agency said Israel bombarded multiple villages near the border as well.</p> <p>So far, the war has resulted in at least 363 fatalities in Lebanon, primarily Hezbollah fighters but also including around 70 civilians, according to the tally by news agency AFP.</p> <p>On the Israeli side, the military has reported 10 soldiers and 8 civilians killed.</p> <p>Tens of thousands of civilians have fled their residences on both sides of the border due to the violence.</p> <h3><strong>US Sending Reinforcements To Middle East, Says Defence Official</strong></h3> <p>Meanwhile, the United States on Friday said it was sending reinforcements to the Middle East amid escalating fears that Iran could soon launch an attack on Israel.</p> <p>"We are moving additional assets to the region to bolster regional deterrence efforts and increase force protection for US forces," a US defence official in Washington, a key ally of Israel, said, AFP reported.</p> <p>The US also said a &ldquo;reprisal&rdquo; from Tehran is a possibility after Israel hit the Iranian embassy in Syria.</p> <p>In a statement on Friday, the White House said the threat of Iran avenging the killing of its two top generals in the Israeli air strike recently was &ldquo;real&rdquo;.</p> <p>&ldquo;We still deem the potential threat by Iran here to be real, to be viable,&rdquo; National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told journalists, according to AFP.</p>

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