Israel-Gaza updates: Israel strikes 'deep inside' Lebanon after deadly attack

Hezbollah denied involvement in Saturday's strike, which Israel said killed 12.

ByKevin Shalvey, Meredith Deliso, Nadine El-Bawab, and Ivan Pereira
Last Updated: July 28, 2024, 4:44 PM EDT

As the Israel-Hamas war continues, efforts to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization are ongoing, and Israeli forces have launched an assault in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
Jul 28, 2024, 6:40 AM EDT

'Every indication' Hezbollah was behind strike, Blinken says

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that "every indication" pointed to Hezbollah as being behind the deadly strike on Saturday in the Israel-occupied Golan Heights.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attend a press conference at the Iikura Guest House in Tokyo on July 28, 2024.
David Mareuil/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

"There is no justification for terrorism. Period," Blinken said on Sunday in Tokyo. "And every indication is that, indeed the rockets were from, or the rocket was from Hezbollah."

-ABC News' Brittany N. Gaddy

Jul 28, 2024, 3:28 AM EDT

Israel strikes 'deep inside' Lebanon after deadly attack

The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday said the military struck Hezbollah targets "deep inside" Lebanon overnight.

The Israeli Air Force targeted "weapons caches and terrorist infrastructure" in about a half-dozen areas in southern Lebanon, the military said in a statement.

A damaged gate and debris are seen at a football pitch after a reported strike from Lebanon fell in Majdal Shams village in the Israeli-annexed Golan area on July 28, 2024.
Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images

The Israeli attack on Hezbollah infrastructure followed a deadly strike within Israel on Saturday. Hezbollah denied responsibility for the attack in Majdal Shams, a town in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

But an Israeli official said the rocket that struck a sports field, killing 12 people and injuring more than a dozen others, had been fired by Hezbollah.

A man stands near a damaged gate around a football pitch after a reported strike from Lebanon fell in Majdal Shams village in the Israeli-annexed Golan area on July 28, 2024.
Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images

"We know to say that it is a Falaq rocket with a 53 kg warhead. This is a Hezbollah rocket," Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, IDF chief of the general staff, said in a statement. "And whoever launches such a rocket into a built-up area wants to kill civilians, wants to kill children."

Jul 27, 2024, 6:58 PM EDT

'Israel will not let this pass in silence,' Netanyahu says

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video statement following the attack on occupied Golan Heights which the IDF says has killed 12 people, all teenagers and young adults.

The prime minister said he will return to Israel early and convene the Security Cabinet as soon as he arrives.

"The State of Israel will not let this pass in silence. We will not overlook this," he said in Hebrew.

-ABC News' Victoria Beaulé

Jul 27, 2024, 4:06 PM EDT

Israel preparing 'response' against Hezbollah

Israel is preparing a "response" against Hezbollah after a number of strikes on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights killed at least 10 people, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a statement Saturday. Hezbollah has denied responsibility for the attack.

Israel has continued to accuse Hezbollah of firing the strikes despite its denial.

"This is an attack that comes after attack in the north for more than 9 months, Hezbollah is attacking our citizens in the north firing thousands of rockets and missiles and UAVs at northern Israel. Targeting families, homes, and communities. The IDF is currently holding a situational assessment and we will prepare for a response against Hezbollah. We will finish our assessments and we will act," Hagari said in a video statement.

-ABC News' Bruno Nota

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