Beirut: A rocket fired from Lebanon toward Israel fell short, wounding a Lebanese woman, the Lebanese army said yesterday.
The launch comes nearly two weeks after rockets fired from Lebanese territory hit Israel in the first such attack in two years, and two days after an attack on French peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
It follows rising concerns that conflict in next-door Syria may spill into its neighbour, where the Lebanese are deeply divided between supporters and opponents of the Syrian regime. The Lebanese see regional powers, including Syria, as having sponsored violence in their country in the past, to send messages to each other or to settle accounts.
Patrols intensified
This latest rocket was fired late on Sunday from the southern village of Majdal Silim and hit a home in Houla, another village close to the border, the army said in a statement. The statement said the woman was seriously wounded and her home damaged.
The army said troops cordoned off the area where the rocket landed and intensified patrols in the place where the rocket was launched. Early yesterday, warplanes were seen flying at high altitude over southern and eastern Lebanon as well as Beirut. Israeli warplanes and drones frequently fly over Lebanon but it was not clear if these flights were related to the rocket attack.
The southern border has been tense, but largely quiet, since Hezbollah and Israel fought a deadly 34-day war in 2006. There have been several rocket launches since the 2006 war, but Hezbollah has not claimed responsibility for any of them. Smaller Palestinian factions, some linked to Al Qaida, have claimed to have launched rockets on several occasions.
The latest rocket launch that reached Israel, the first in two years, happened in November.
Sunday's launch came two days after a roadside bomb hit a UN vehicle in southern Lebanon, wounding five French peacekeepers and a Lebanese bystander.
France's foreign minister said Sunday that France had "strong reason" to believe Syria was behind the blast. Alain Juppe told RFI radio that Paris believes Hezbollah was also involved, but has no proof.
Close ties
Syria's foreign ministry yesterday denied that his country had any role in the attack against peacekeepers. The ministry said in a statement that Juppe's comments "fabricate and forge facts about Syria".
Damascus dominated Lebanon for three decades until it withdrew its troops in 2005, and retains close ties with numerous Lebanese factions including Hezbollah. Syrian President Bashar Al Assad is facing international condemnation for crushing an uprising against his rule, and France has been among his fiercest critics.
