Videos Show Dozens of Rockets Flying as Israel Strikes Hamas in Lebanon

Dramatic footage has emerged of rockets flying overhead as Israel said it was launching air strikes against Hamas militants firing rocket barrages from Lebanon.

Video shows strikes launched at Israel being intercepted by the Israeli "Iron Dome" defense system after a barrage of rockets fired from Lebanon overnight prompted their own strikes over the border.

On Friday morning, Israeli military forces struck targets in Lebanon and Gaza after Israel blamed Islamist group Hamas for a series of earlier rocket attacks. Blasts were reported in several parts of Gaza, as well as sites in southern Lebanon.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the Israeli military would "not allow the Hamas terrorist organization to operate from within Lebanon & hold the state of Lebanon responsible for every directed fire emanating from its territory."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said "Israel's response, tonight and in the future, will exact a heavy price." It was the largest-scale attack since 2006, when Israel fought a month-long war with the south Lebanon-based Hezbollah.

As tensions continued to grow, two Israeli sisters were killed and their mother was seriously wounded in a shooting attack on a vehicle in the occupied West Bank, Israeli officials said on Friday. Over 20 bullet casings were found at the scene, according to Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post.

Netanyahu is expected to "hold a security assessment" on Friday after receiving "a detailed update" on the deaths of the two Israeli women in the Jordan Valley, the Israeli leader's office said.

Hamas, and "other unidentified Palestinian militants," had launched at least 34 rockets into northern Israel" the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said on Thursday. At least three people were injured, as four rockets landed in Israeli territory, the think tank said.

In a statement previously shared with Newsweek, a spokesperson for Hamas condemned "in the strongest terms the blatant Zionist aggression against Lebanon."

The IDF strikes "validated the brutality of the fascist occupation leadership, its policies that threaten peace and security in the region by violating the sovereignty of brotherly Arab countries," the spokesperson said. "We hold the Zionist entity and its fascist leadership fully responsible for the repercussions of this dangerous escalation."

On Thursday, a spokesperson for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) told Newsweek that the IDF told UNIFIL that they would "begin an artillery response to yesterday's rocket launches."

"Immediately after, UNIFIL personnel heard loud explosions around the city of Tyre," the spokesperson said. The strikes back and forth risk "serious escalation," they added.

In one clip, posted by Reuters, rockets destined for Israel fired from Gaza are intercepted by Israeli air defense. Israel's Foreign Ministry, also posting footage of rockets flying overhead, said on Twitter on Thursday that 25 rockets were intercepted by the Aerial Defense Array, better known as the Iron Dome air defense system.

In another series of videos, rockets can be seen soaring in broad daylight over buildings, including what appear to be residences. One excerpt shows smoke rising in what appears to be Israeli territory. Newsweek was unable to independently verify the location or time of recording of the footage.

Tensions had flared after Israeli police entered the Al-Aqsa mosque earlier this week. Violence broke out between Israeli authorities and Palestinians during the consecutive raids, which coincided with both Ramadan and the start of Passover. Al-Aqsa is a holy site in both Judaism and Islam.

Three people were taken to hospital after the clashes, and 12 were injured, the Palestine Red Crescent Society told Newsweek. Further injuries and hospitalizations were reported by the society after those placed under arrest by Israeli forces were released.

"The injuries varied between beatings, stun grenades, and rubber-coated metal bullets," the society said.

Ambulances were stopped from entering the vicinity of the mosque, with one ambulance hit with a stun grenade "which led to the smashing of the mirror on the side of the driver," the spokesperson for the society said. "The ambulance driver was also assaulted by pushing and beating, which led to his injury to the right foot. Rubber bullets were fired at another ambulance."

Hamas called the deadly shooting of the two sisters in the West Bank "a natural response to the occupation's ongoing crimes against Al-Aqsa Mosque and its barbaric aggression against Lebanon and the steadfast Gaza," according to Israeli media. However, the group stopped short of claiming responsibility.

The IDF is "actively looking to de-escalate the situation in order to ensure freedom of worship and safety for civilians of all faiths," IDF International Spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht said in a message posted to Twitter on Friday.

Update 04/07/2023, 11:28 a.m. EDT: This article was updated with later information.