IDF calls up Air Force reservists amid terror attacks, rocket barrages

IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi convened a situation assessment on Friday afternoon, during which he ordered the call up of some reserves, with an emphasis on air defense and offensive formations in the Air Force, in light of the tensions in the region.

Opposition politicians criticized the government's handling of Israel's security after Tuesday and Wednesday's rocket attacks from Gaza, and Thursday's rocket barrage from Lebanon.

Yisrael Beytenu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman wrote on Twitter, "The writing was on the wall."

"In three months, Netanyahu dragged the State of Israel into an impossible situation. We were never so crumbled from within and isolated from without," Liberman wrote.

"Israel's deterrence and the weakness that the government is conveying brought our enemies to a planned and coordinated move. It is clear that there is full coordination between Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and the rest of the terror organizations," he claimed.

WASHINGTON - The United States condemned on Thursday the recent rocket barrage at Israel's North from southern Lebanon.

"Our commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad. We recognize Israel’s legitimate right to defend its people and territory against all forms of aggression," said an NSC Spokesperson.

"Using Lebanon as a launchpad for rocket attacks against Israel only puts the Lebanese people at risk and increases the potential for further instability in the country," the spokesperson added. 

"We urge all sides to avoid further escalation," they went on to say. 

According to the spokesperson, the President has been fully briefed, and Ambassador Nides and others throughout the US government continue their regular dialogue with Israel on this and other matters of mutual concern.

"As the State Department reiterated just yesterday, we stand firmly for the preservation of the historic status quo at holy sites in Jerusalem," the spokesperson said, noting that the US "also condemn the launch of rockets at Israel."

US SECRETARY OF State Antony Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leave the podium after their joint press conference on Monday, in Jerusalem. (credit: Ronaldo Schemidt/Reuters)

Three mortar shells were fired from Lebanon toward the northern Israeli city of Metulla on Thursday evening and landed in open areas, according to Israeli media reports.

The municipality told residents of Metulla to seek shelter immediately and to stay there until further notice. It added that the public shelters in the city were open and available.

The IDF Iron Dome defense system was not activated in the attack. The local Magen David Adom branch confirmed that there were no reports of injuries.

After the rocket attack from Lebanon on Israel earlier on Thursday, a number of municipalities had opened their public bomb shelters.

Dozens of Palestinian youths clashed with Israeli police forces in the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City late on Wednesday evening.

Groups of young Palestinian men, some of them masked, threw fireworks and stones at the police forces and attempted to barricade themselves in the mosque, shutting its doors and preventing other worshipers from leaving the area, according to an Israel Police spokesperson.

The police prevented them from barricading themselves and enabled other worshipers to exit the mosque. Shortly before midnight, the compound was cleared completely by the Israeli police forces.

Six people were injured in the clashes, according to Walla, citing the Palestinian Red Crescent.

Following the clashes on the Temple Mount, further clashes erupted in Jerusalem's Old City. One 14-year-old Palestinian boy was injured lightly after he was shot by a Israeli resident of the Old City, according to Palestinian media reports.

Palestinian factions belonging to Hamas in Lebanon are responsible for the barrage of 34 rockets fired from Lebanon into Israel on Thursday afternoon, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari confirmed.

"We are in an event with multiple theaters, but a single organization - the Palestinian factions of Hamas are shooting from Lebanon. Iranian involvement is also being examined. The state of Lebanon carries responsibility when shots are fired from within it," Hagari said.

Initial security assessments had pointed to the possibility that armed Palestinian factions in Lebanon were responsible for the attack.

According to Israeli defense officials, the rocket barrage was carried out in response to recent violent clashes between Palestinian rioters and Israeli police in al-Aqsa.

Rocket sirens sounded across northern Israel on Thursday afternoon, during the Passover holiday, amid a barrage of rocket attacks launched across the northern border with Lebanon, the IDF confirmed.

A single rocket launched from Lebanese territory was successfully shot down by the Iron Dome air defense system. Minutes later, sirens sounded in dozens of northern Israeli towns and villages, especially in western Galilee, amid a barrage of rockets from Israel's northern border.