Hezbollah’s drone attack kills 4 Israeli soldiers in Tel Aviv a day after deadly Israeli air strike

In one of the deadliest attacks on Israel in recent weeks, the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group on Oct 13 fired a drone in the central-northern region killing at least four Israeli soldiers and injuring seven others. The drone attack came a day after an Israeli airstrike killed at least 22 Palestinians, including children sheltering at a school in the central Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile Israel escalated its air strike on Gaza in the early hours on Oct 14, killing three more people and wounding 40 others. The attack targeted tents of displaced Palestinians inside Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah, where a million people were sheltering, medics were quoted as saying.

The Israeli military claimed these strikes targeted Hamas militants allegedly using civilian facilities for military operations. Hamas in a statement denied these claims.

On social media, videos showed several tents on fire on Oct 14 as some Palestinians tried helplessly to put out the fire. As the Israeli military continues its offensive, it has effectively isolated towns like Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, and Beit Lahiya from Gaza City, restricting movement and access to aid, news agency Reuters reported quoting the residents.

The Israeli military in a statement on Oct 13 said its forces operating throughout Gaza in the past 24 hours had attacked about 40 targets and killed dozens of militants. “The forces of Division 162 continue to operate in the Jabalia region, in the last day the forces killed dozens of terrorists and found explosives, weapons, grenades, and other means of warfare in the region,” the statement added.

Alongside Israel's offensive in Gaza and southern Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that Hezbollah fired an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) which hit an army base near Binyamina, a town north of Tel Aviv. The attack targeted a military training facility of Israel’s elite Golani Brigade.

According to first responders and emergency services in Israel, at least 61 people had been injured in the drone attack by the Lebanon-based group.

The IDF further added that an investigation is underway into how the drone entered the Israeli airspace without triggering any alert. In a video message on Oct 14, the Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said, “We will learn from and investigate the incident, how a UAV entered without an alert at the base.”

Meanwhile, the United States on Oct 13 announced that it would be sending an advanced anti-missile system to Israel and the US troops to operate the same for Tel Aviv to bolster its air defense systems.

President Joe Biden said that he was sending the weapon to defend Israel. Pentagon’s spokesperson Pat Ryder in a statement said, “It is part of the broader adjustments the US military has made in recent months, to support the defense of Israel and protect Americans from attacks by Iran and Iranian-aligned militias.”

US Vice President Kamala Harris expressed concern over the scarcity of food in Gaza saying, “No food has entered northern Gaza in nearly two weeks”. In her post on X, she added, “Israel must urgently do more to facilitate the flow of aid to those in need. Civilians must be protected and must have access to food, water, and medicine. International humanitarian law must be respected.”

Palestinian and United Nations officials have repeatedly sounded alarms saying there are no safe areas in Gaza. They also indicated severe shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies in northern Gaza, adding that the besieged enclave is at a risk of famine there.