Two rounds of air raid sirens blared in quick succession in Jerusalem, AFP journalists have reported, after the Israeli military said it had detected two missile barrages incoming from Iran.

It said air defence systems were “operating to intercept the threat.” In a separate statement shortly after the first salvo was announced, the military said that “several launches… from Lebanon toward Israeli territory were successfully intercepted after sirens sounded in central Israel.

Lebanon was dragged into the regional war on Monday when the pro-Iran Hezbollah group launched an attack on Israel, saying it wanted to “avenge” the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei during US-Israeli strikes, sparking Israeli retaliation.

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