Israeli Military Exchanges Fire With Hezbollah on Lebanon’s Border

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli soldiers fought to repel Hamas militants Sunday and exchanged fire with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, raising the prospect of a broader regional conflagration a day after an unprecedented surprise attack on southern Israel by Palestinian militants that killed at least 250 and left Israelis stunned and reeling.

The Hamas militants broke out of the blockaded Gaza Strip and rampaged through nearby Israeli communities, taking captives, including women, children and the elderly, while Israel's retaliation strikes leveled buildings in Gaza and its prime minister said the country was at war.

Hezbollah struck Israeli positions in a disputed area along the border with Syria’s Golan Heights, and Israel’s military responded with armed drone strikes on Hezbollah targets in a disputed area where the borders of Israel, Lebanon and Syria meet.

The flare-up on Israel's northern border threatened to draw into the battle a fierce enemy of Israel's which is backed by Iran and estimated to have tens of thousands of rockets at its disposal.

In an assault of startling breadth, Hamas gunmen rolled into as many as 22 locations outside the Gaza Strip early Saturday morning, including towns and other communities as far as 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the Gaza border, while Hamas launched thousands of rockets at Israeli cities. They killed at least 250 people, including 26 soldiers, and took hostages as Israel’s military scrambled to muster a response.

On Sunday, the Israeli military said it forces were fighting Hamas incursions in eight places. An Israeli military spokesperson said that two hostage situations had been “resolved,” but did not say whether all the hostages had been rescued alive.

Israel struck 426 targets in Gaza, its miltary said, flattening residential buildings in giant explosions. That included a 14-story tower that held dozens of apartments as well as Hamas offices in central Gaza City. Israeli forces fired a warning just before.

The conflict threatened to escalate with Israel’s vows of retaliation, and attacks by Hezbollah.

Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets and shells on Sunday at three Israeli positions in a disputed area along the country’s border with Syria’s Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Israel and Hezbollah are archenemies and have fought several wars in the past, the most recent a 34-day conflict in 2006 that left 1,200 dead in Lebanon and 160 in Israeli. Tensions have been simmering along Israel's northern border for months.

Hezbollah said in a statement that the attack using “large numbers of rockets and shells” was in solidarity with the “Palestinian resistance.” It said the Israeli positions were directly hit.

Israel’s military fired back using armed drones at the Lebanese areas.

By attacking Israeli positions in a disputed area rather than Israel proper, Hezbollah appears to be trying to avoid an all-out conflict with Israel.