Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from Lebanon towards Israel over the Israeli Lebanese border, near Haifa, as seen from northern Israel, August 4, 2024. REUTERS/Ammar Awad
The daily attacks by Lebanese terror group Hezbollah on Israeli targets since October 7 reached a high point in the month of August, despite a short, temporary lull after an Israeli preemptive strike last week.
According to statistics compiled by Israel’s domestic intelligence service Shin Bet and reported by Army Radio, 1,307 rockets were fired at Israel on the northern front, which includes Lebanon and Syria, totaling around 40 a day on average.
This marks the culmination of a steady increase in rocket attacks since the start of the year.
July saw 1,091 rockets being fired at Israel, in June 855, in May 1,000, in April 744, in March 746, in February 534, and in January 334.
The large majority of rockets were fired from Lebanon rather than Syria. In August, an additional 116 rockets were launched at Israel from the Gaza Strip.
Hezbollah launched the majority of rockets, with several other groups like the local Hamas branch, the Amal movement, and others, participating in the attacks.
According to Army Radio, the increase in attacks by Hezbollah corresponds to an increase in IDF strikes killing Hezbollah terrorists. 51 operatives from various organizations, most of them from Hezbollah, were killed in August, a significant increase compared to previous months.
Israel’s Alma Research Center reported that overall, Hezbollah and other organizations carried out 281 attacks against Israel, an average of around 9 attacks per day.
These were carried out with a variety of weapons, including rockets, anti-tank missiles, drones, and artillery fire.
Three Israelis were killed by Hezbollah in August, and 30 others were wounded to varying degrees.
The city of Kiryat Shmona has been one of the most significant targets of Hezbollah attacks.
The city, whose residents were evacuated last October, has suffered 124 separate rocket attacks, with over 370 Grad, Burkan, and Falaq-type rockets confirmed to have been used in the barrages, according to Alma.
The town’s mayor Avichai Stern told Ynet News that many homes have been destroyed.
“Unfortunately, every day we have to tell more families that they will not have a home to return to, there are houses that need to be demolished and rebuilt,” he said.
“We need to get to a point where [Hezbollah] are afraid to fire at Kiryat Shmona,” he demanded.
