Hezbollah terrorists in Southern Lebanon launched anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli fighter jets on Sunday, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

“A terrorist cell fired anti-aircraft missiles toward IDF fighter jets operating above Lebanon. No danger was posed to the fighter jets and no injuries were reported. A few minutes later, an IAF aircraft struck and eliminated the terrorist cell that carried out the launches in the area of Tyre,” the military reported.

The incident marks the first time since the start of the war some eight months ago that the Iranian terror proxy has attempted to bring down IDF jets, and comes as Hezbollah has been ratcheting up its attacks against northern Israel in recent weeks.

The IAF struck multiple Hezbollah terror targets throughout Southern Lebanon on Sunday, including in the areas of Chebaa, Aitaroun, Markaba, At Tiri and Houla.

Overnight Sunday, air-raid sirens were sounded in Acre in northwestern Israel, as well as in Kiryat Bialik, near Haifa. The sirens were triggered due to fear of falling interceptor fragments, after Israeli air defense systems attempted to intercept a “suspicious aerial target” that had crossed into Israel from Lebanon. The incident was later declared to have been due to a “false identification.”

Gallant holds situation assessment at northern border

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited Israel’s northern border area with senior IDF officials on Sunday, where he held an operational assessment.

“Minister Gallant was briefed on recent developments in the arena and discussed efforts to thwart UAV attacks conducted by Hezbollah. Minister Gallant emphasized the importance of continuing efforts to eliminate Hezbollah terrorists and terror targets,” his office said.

With reporting by JNS.