The calm in the north of Israel in the middle of the festive day of Pesaj (Jewish Passover) was broken at noon on Thursday with a hail of projectiles from southern Lebanon in one of the worst attacks since the war with the Lebanese group Hezbollah in 2006 The Israeli defensive system intercepted 25 of the 34 projectiles while six managed to hit Israeli soil with a balance of two wounded. There are no deaths due to the action of the Iron Dome and because, for example, a bank in the small town of Shlomi affected by a rocket was closed for Pesaj. Five hours later, three mortar shells hit the Israeli border town of Metula.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his security mini-cabinet tonight to study the response to an attack the army says was the work of the Palestinian groups Hamas or Islamic Jihad. “We are investigating whether Iran is also involved,” military sources told EL MUNDO.

The security organizations, more aware of the militias of the Gaza Strip that launched 20 projectiles against the south of the country since the violent riots in the Al Aqsa mosque on Tuesday night, now share their attention and alert with the marked northern front. due to the renewed tension as a result of the attack on March 13 that was linked to this group and Iran. The Israeli retaliation for the strong explosion at the Megiddo crossing caused by an armed infiltrator from Lebanon was reportedly carried out without a signature and in the shadows with air strikes against Hezbollah and Iranian targets in Syria. On the authorship of the burst of projectiles in the Galilee, the army confirmed the estimate of three security sources in Lebanon cited by Reuters. That is, it was not the immediate suspect, the powerful Hezbollah. The belief is that they were Palestinian armed factions motivated by what happened in Jerusalem. The pro-Iranian Lebanese group distanced itself, although an attack of this magnitude can hardly be carried out in southern Lebanon without its knowledge. Coincidentally or not, it coincided with the visit to Beirut of the Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyah, aimed at reinforcing the alliance with Hezbollah under the leadership of Iran against the common enemy. Following clashes between Israeli and Palestinian agents on the Mosque Grounds that drew widespread condemnation in the Arab world, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned: “We will support the Palestinian people and resistance factions in all steps they take to protect the faithful and the Al Aqsa Mosque and deter the enemy”.

Since the inauguration of his ultra-conservative coalition more than 100 days ago after elections in which his promises on security in the face of the “weakness” of the previous government played an important role, Netanyahu has faced strong criticism. Beyond the unprecedented internal crisis as a result of the judicial reform project that he finally suspended, the Palestinian attacks continue, the number of projectiles from Gaza against the south has increased considerably, the north suffers the biggest blow from Lebanon in many years and Relations with the main ally, the US, are deteriorating. All this under the impression that Iran feels strong and assumes more risks in its campaign against Israel, either directly or through militias in the region.

Israel’s deterrence capacity has weakened in recent months, according to military intelligence (Aman). In this sense, Netanyahu’s announcement to dismiss Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on March 26 for having publicly asked to stop the judicial reform plan, alleging that the growing fracture harms national security, did not help. Netanyahu has suspended the dismissal but without completely guaranteeing its continuity, which has been frowned upon by the military leadership that met this Thursday to advise the cabinet, meeting for the first time since February, a harsh response but without causing an escalation either in Lebanon or in Gaza under Hamas control.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project