On Sunday afternoon sirens sounded across northern Israel, sending residents running for shelter, and the military said it intercepted five of nine rockets fired from Lebanon. It then responded with artillery fire at the area from where the rockets were launched.
"We have no interest in a war in the north. We don't want to escalate the situation," Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told reporters. "If Hezbollah chooses the path of war, it will pay a very heavy price. Very heavy. But if it restrains itself, we will respect that and keep the situation as it is," Gallant said, noting that there had been exchanges of fire across the border.Thousands of Australians joined pro-Palestinian rallies on Sunday, despite police threats to curb them amid tension after the bloody Hamas incursion into Israel eight days ago.