Hezbollah says it targeted Israel's Haifa naval base with missiles
Hezbollah launches missile attack on Haifa naval base
Hezbollah said it targeted northern Israel's Haifa naval base on Tuesday, its 12th attack of the day as Israel continued to strike Lebanon, including Beirut's southern suburbs.
In a statement, the Iran-backed group said that "in response to the criminal Israeli aggression that struck dozens of Lebanese cities and towns, including Beirut's southern suburbs".
The group claimed it launched “a barrage of high-quality missiles” toward the base.
The Israeli military had said shortly after 8:00 pm that several incoming projectiles were detected, and most were shot down.
Escalation
The exchange marks a sharp escalation along Israel’s northern front as fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah intensifies in parallel with broader regional tensions.
Shortly after that time, the Israel Defense Forces said multiple incoming projectiles were detected from Lebanon, adding that most were intercepted by Israel’s air defense systems.
No damage
There were no immediate reports of significant damage at the naval facility in Haifa, a major port city that hosts key civilian and military infrastructure.
Haifa is strategically significant: beyond its commercial port and energy facilities, it houses important naval assets and lies within range of Hezbollah’s expanding missile arsenal.
Since the Gaza war erupted in 2023, cross-border exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah have become frequent, but strikes on deeper targets such as Haifa signal a widening scope.
Israeli operations
The latest salvo comes as Israel continues air operations across southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs, targeting what it says are Hezbollah command centres, weapons depots and launch sites.
Hezbollah, for its part, has framed its attacks as retaliation and part of a broader “resistance axis” posture aligned with Iran.
Analysts warn that sustained exchanges of this scale increase the risk of miscalculation, potentially drawing Lebanon and Israel into a broader, more destructive conflict beyond the limited border clashes seen in previous rounds.
