Rockets fired from Lebanon hit Israel

Rockets from Lebanon struck northern Israel on Sunday, causing no injuries but sparking an Israeli reprisal shelling in a rare flare-up between the two countries.

Residents of the northern Israel town of Kiryat Shmona awoke to two large explosions. Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the rocket fire caused no injuries or damage. Shortly after, the Israeli military said it responded with artillery fired toward the source of the launch.

Lebanon’s state news agency said the border area was shelled after the rockets hit Israel. The agency said more than 20 shells hit the mountainous region around the southern Lebanese border area of Rachaya.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the military for responding “quickly and forcefully” to the rocket attack. He accused the government of Lebanon of “not lifting a finger” to stop the “war crimes” committed in its territory by Hezbollah guerrillas.