'Hezbollah is escalating': Israeli mayor warns northern Israelis

The mayor of Kiryat Shmona warned all residents who were still in the northernmost Israeli city to leave immediately, as Hezbollah is escalating its operations along Israel's northern border.

In a recorded message, Avichai Stern warned residents to "not take any excess risk. For anyone still in the city, this is the time to make a phone call and leave.

"Another day of massive fire with three rockets fired at our city," Stern said. "To our delight, all rocket launches toward our city only resulted in landings in open fields."

ראש העיר מקרית שמונה, אביחי שטרן:״אני קורא לתושבים שנשארו בעיר לעזוב עוד היום את העיר.."הישמרו מאוד לנפשותיכם pic.twitter.com/z2MbEWQJME

— miri barbi 64,000 (@MiriBarbi) February 25, 2024

Terror cell exits Hezbollah compound, eliminated in airstrike

Israeli fighter jets targeted and eliminated a Hezbollah terror cell in the area of Blida in southern Lebanon shortly after the cell exited a military compound, the IDF said on Sunday.

Two other military compounds in the area were also targeted.

Earlier, the IDF's Aerial Defense Array brought down a suspicious aerial target after it had penetrated into Israeli airspace over the Upper Galilee from Lebanon, the military added,

Additionally, over the past hours, Israel identified launches coming from Lebanon that were directed toward the areas of Margaliot, Har Dov, Kiryat Shmona, Menara, and Malkiya in Israel's north. The IDF responded by striking the sources of rocket fire.