Israel’s Ministry of Defense (MOD) announced early Friday that it was evacuating a northern city near the border of Lebanon.
The MOD and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a joint statement in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that civilians in the city of Kiryat Shmona were being moved to “state-subsidized guesthouses.” Kiryat Shmona is home to more than 20,000 residents.
The Minustry of Defense & the IDF announce the evacuation of the northern city of Kiryat Shmona’s residents to state-subsidized guesthouses. The implementation of the evacuation program was approved by DM Yoav Gallant. The IDF notified the mayor of Kiryat Shmona a short while ago
— Ministry of Defense (@Israel_MOD) October 20, 2023
Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant approved the “implementation of the evacuation program,” according to the statement.
“The IDF notified the mayor of Kiryat Shmona a short while ago,” the statement concluded.
Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shi’a militant group in Lebanon, launched rockets across the border at northern towns in Israel. In response to the attacks from the north, Israel launched rockets into southern Lebanon.
Three people were left injured after rockets and gunfire were fired from Lebanon, hitting Kiryat Shmona. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack, according to The Times of Israel.
The Israeli Air Force posted a video appearing to show “three terrorists” from Hezbollah who had been killed in an airstrike while attempting to try to cross the northern border.
כוחות צה"ל תקפו חוליית מחבלים של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) October 20, 2023
שלושה מחבלים של ארגון הטרור חזבאללה זוהו לפני זמן קצר במרחב הגדר בגבול לבנון. כלי טיס של חיל-האויר שפעל במרחב תקף את המחבלים. pic.twitter.com/6xTKg92Ouz
The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory and recommended citizens not travel to Lebanon due to “rocket, missile, and artillery exchanges between Israel and Hizballah or other armed militant factions.”
Families of U.S. government personnel and non-emergency personnel were also authorized to depart from Lebanon on a “case-by-case basis.”
The evacuation of Kiryat Shmona comes as Israel continues to fight against Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist organization, that attacked the country on Oct. 7, firing thousands of rockets and killing more than 250 people who had been attending a music festival near the Gaza border.
Since the attack, more than 1,400 people in Israel have been left dead, including 32 Americans. Hamas terrorists beheaded babies, “butchered” parents who had been trying to protect and save their children, raped women and murdered entire families.
The IDF says it has contacted the families of 203 people and informed them that their loved ones are among the people who have been taken as hostages by Hamas, according to The New York Times.
Two American hostages, a mother and daughter, were reported to have been released by Hamas Friday, according to Fox News.
A spokesperson from Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, explained in a statement that it had released the hostages “for humanitarian reasons, and to prove to the American people and the world that the claims made by Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless.”