Hezbollah to ‘respond double’ if Lebanese civilians hurt by Israel

BEIRUT: Hezbollah has promised to respond “double” to any Israeli attacks on civilians after a strike that killed three children and their grandmother in south Lebanon.

“The resistance will respond double to any aggression that targets civilians,” Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Fayyad said at the funeral of the four Lebanese killed on Sunday.

“It hasn’t yet shown all its weight,” he said, referring to the powerful group.

The remarks reflect the volatile situation on the Israeli-Lebanese border where deadly clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters are fueling fears of a wider Middle East war.

The border violence is the deadliest since the Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006. More than 60 Hezbollah fighters and 10 civilians have died. At least seven Israeli soldiers and one civilian have been killed.

It is pertinent to mention here that an Israeli airstrike on a car in south Lebanon martyred three children and their grandmother on Sunday.

A report by the Lebanese security forces said the children were killed when Israel targeted the car they were in as it drove between the villages of Aynata and Aitaroun. Their grandmother was also killed and their mother was wounded.

In response to the Israeli attack, Hezbollah launched a rocket attack in the northern region of Israel. Hezbollah said that the Israeli town of Kiryat Shimuna was targeted by rockets.

In a statement, Hezbollah said it would never tolerate attacks on civilians and its response would be “firm and strong”.

“The enemy will pay the price for its crimes against civilians,” Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah told Reuters.