Israeli aircraft strike rocket launch sites in Lebanon, military says

A Lebanese army soldier displays part of an Israeli missile from an airstrike in Dimashqiya farmlands, southern Lebanon, Thursday, Aug 5, 2021. Israel on Thursday escalated its response to rocket attacks this week by launching rare airstrikes on Lebanon, the army and Lebanese officials said. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

JERUSALEM (Reuters): Israeli jets struck what its military said were rocket launch sites in Lebanon early on Thursday (Aug 5) in response to two rockets fired towards Israel from Lebanese territory, in an escalation of cross-border hostilities amid heightened friction with Iran.

The rockets launched from Lebanon on Wednesday (Aug 4) struck open areas in northern Israel, causing brush fires along the hilly frontier. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, which came from an area of south Lebanon under the sway of Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters.