WarSclerotic

The Lebanese Army says it has located several rockets prepared for launch in southern Lebanon.

In a tweet, the Lebanese Army says units located a number of rockets near the towns of Zibqin and Qlaileh.

Earlier, at least 34 rockets were launched into Israel from Lebanon, in an attack blamed on the Hamas terror group.

Military spokesman Daniel Hagari says the Gaza Strip-based Hamas terror group is behind the rocket fire from Lebanon.

In a briefing to reporters, Hagari notes the attack comes amid clashes between police and Palestinians at Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount.

Hagari says the Israel Defense Forces is looking into Iranian involvement in the attack, but says it was carried out by Hamas.

Hamas is also behind recent rocket fire from Gaza, he says.

He adds that while the IDF sees a “convergence of the arenas,” the West Bank is relatively calm, and there are no changes to Israeli policy on the Temple Mount, with Jews being unable to visit during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

Ex-military intel chief: Lebanon rockets fired by Palestinian groups, not Hezbollah

The former head of the IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate Tamir Hayman says that Palestinian terror factions in Lebanon were responsible for the barrage of rockets at northern Israel this afternoon.

“It wasn’t Hezbollah shooting, but it’s hard to believe that Hezbollah didn’t know about it,” Hayman says.

He speculates that the reasons behind the barrage were the clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian worshippers on the Temple Mount over the past two days “as part of the broad identification that was created in the Palestinian/Arab arena for what was perceived as the ‘desecration’ of Al-Aqsa.”

Another factor that led to the rocket fire was Nasrallah’s “false and exaggerated sense of self-confidence that stems from a wrong interpretation of the recent events,” Hayman says, pointing to the failed bombing attempt in Megiddo by a suspect who infiltrated from Lebanon and the maritime deal the previous government struck with Beirut.

“Another supporting factor is the internal situation in Israel,” Hayman says, highlighting the massive public uproar over the government’s judicial overhaul effort.

“As we estimated, our enemy will not take advantage of this for a premeditated attack, but will take advantage of it if there’s a coincidence or an explosive incident like what’s been happening at the Temple Mount,” Hayman says.

Foreign Ministry in message to embassies: Israel will respond to attack from Lebanon

The Foreign Ministry is instructing its missions around the world to make clear to the international community that Israel will respond to today’s rocket barrage from Lebanon and expects countries to issue a clear condemnation of the attack against it.