Nineteen people injured in central Israel after Hezbollah launches rockets from Lebanon

Israeli air strikes across Lebanon's north-eastern farming villages on Friday killed at least 52

An Israeli policeman stands in front of a damaged building following a rocket attack from southern Lebanon on the town of Tira, in central Israel, on November 2. AFP

A damaged home in Tira, a predominantly Arab town about 25km north-east of Tel Aviv, near the border with the occupied West Bank. AP Photo

Hezbollah said it had targeted the rockets at an Israeli intelligence base near Tel Aviv. AP Photo

Police officers and residents view damaged cars in Tira, central Israel after the rocket attack. AFP

The Israeli military said that sirens sounded in several areas of central Israel after the rockets were launched. Reuters

A man surveys his wrecked car in Tira. AP Photo

Several people were injured in the attack, said Israel's ambulance service. AFP

Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza

Israeli authorities said 19 people in central Israel's Sharon region were injured on Saturday after projectiles were launched from Lebanon into Israeli territory.

The early morning strike on Tira, a predominantly Arab town about 25km from Tel Aviv, was one of several barrages fired from Lebanon. The Israeli military said that sirens sounded in several areas of central Israel after the projectiles were fired. Some rockets and drones had been intercepted, it said.

“A fallen projectile was most likely identified in the area,” the army said, noting that the incident was under investigation.

The national ambulance service and local media said the injuries in Tira ranged from mild to moderate, while two other people suffered stress symptoms.

Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah claimed responsibility for firing missiles towards the 8200 military intelligence unit base in Glilot on the edge of Tel Aviv and for attacking central Israel's Palmachim Air Base with explosive drones, saying they “scored precise hits on targets”.

Hezbollah said the Saturday dawn missile attack was in retaliation for the “massacres” that are being committed by Israel. Israel's military has not confirmed either base was targeted or hit.

A coalition of pro-Iran groups in Iraq also said it carried out four drone attacks on the Israeli resort of Eilat after Israel said it intercepted three drones approaching from the east. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said it was behind the attacks on what it called “four vital targets” in the resort on Israel's Red Sea coast, all conducted within one hour.

The attacks came after Israel conducted dozens of air strikes across Lebanon's north-eastern farming villages on Friday. In Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, Israel carried out a series of air strikes on Friday, killing at least 52 people and driving more families to flee. Thick plumes of smoke were seen over the horizon.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq also said it had launched drones at a “vital target” in northern Israel. On Thursday, rocket fire from Lebanon killed seven people in Metula, in northern Israel, including four Thai farmers.

Fighting in Lebanon has escalated in recent weeks between Israeli forces and the Hezbollah group.

According to Israeli official figures, at least 63 people have been killed on the Israeli side since cross-border exchanges with Hezbollah started in October last year after the deadly attack on southern Israel by Hamas. The year-long cross-border fighting boiled over on October 1, when Israeli forces launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon for the first time since 2006.

Since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah began, more than 2,897 people have been killed and 13,150 wounded in Lebanon, the Health Ministry said, not including Friday's casualties. Health authorities say that a quarter of those killed were women and children.

UN agencies estimate that Israel’s ground invasion and bombardment of Lebanon has displaced 1.4 million people. Residents of Israel’s northern communities near Lebanon, about 60,000 people, have also been displaced for more than a year.

The UN peacekeeping chief said the UN force, Unifil, is determined to stay in southern Lebanon, not only because of its mandate monitoring attacks by Israel and Hezbollah but because the departure of peacekeepers would likely mean UN compounds would be taken over by one of the warring parties.

“That would be very bad for many reasons, including the perception of impartiality and neutrality of the United Nations,” the UN's Jean-Pierre Lacroix said on Friday.

At the start of Israel’s latest offensive last month, Israel asked the UN peacekeeping force to pull back 5km from the Lebanese border for their safety, but the UN refused.

“Unifil peacekeepers are staying,” Mr Lacroix said. “They’re holding the line and they’re determined to continue doing what they’re mandated to do.”