Hezbollah Leader Says More Israelis Will Be Displaced As Militants Extend Rocket Fire

“We are firing hundreds of rockets and dozens of drone,” said Hezbollah’s acting leader, Sheikh Naim Kassem.

BEIRUT (AP) — Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets into Israel on Tuesday, and the militant group’s acting leader vowed to keep up pressure that has forced tens of thousands of Israelis from their homes near the Lebanese border. The Israeli military said it sent more ground troops into southern Lebanon, and that a senior Hezbollah commander was killed in an airstrike.

Dozens of rockets fired by Hezbollah were aimed as far south as Haifa, and the Israeli government warned residents to the north of the coastal city to limit activities, prompting the closure of more schools. The Israeli military said Hezbollah launched more than 170 rockets across the border.

Sheikh Naim Kassem, the acting leader of Hezbollah, said its military capabilities are still intact after weeks of heavy Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon, and attacks that killed its top commanders in a matter of days.

Kassem said Israeli forces have not been able to advance since launching a ground incursion into Lebanon last week. The Israeli military said Tuesday it deployed a fourth division, and that operations have expanded to the west, but its focus still appears to be a narrow strip along the border.

The Israeli military said it has dismantled militant infrastructure along the border and killed hundreds of Hezbollah fighters. On Tuesday, it said a strike in Beirut had killed Suhail Husseini, who it described as a senior commander responsible overseeing logistics, budget and management of the militant group.