The United Nations forces operating in southern Lebanon ( UNIFIL ) warned today (Thursday) that the "current situation is very dangerous" on the Lebanese- Israeli border after mutual shelling, calling on Lebanon and Israel to "restraint and avoid escalation."

The Lebanese official National News Agency stated that the deputy director of the UNIFIL media office, Candice Ardel, said in a statement that "several missiles were fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel this afternoon, and the Israeli army informed UNIFIL that it activated the Iron Dome defense system in response."

The statement indicated that "the head of the UNIFIL mission and its commander, Major General Aroldo Lazaro, are in contact with the authorities on both sides of the (blue line)" border.

"The current situation is very dangerous, and UNIFIL urges restraint and avoiding further escalation," Ardel added.

A state of high tension prevails on both sides of the Lebanese-Israeli border after rockets were fired from southern Lebanon at Israel, which the latter responded with artillery shelling.

Today, Israeli artillery fired several shells towards the outskirts of the town of Qlaila in the western sector of southern Lebanon, after firing rockets at northern Israel, according to security sources and eyewitnesses from the border area.

Official security sources in the Internal Security Forces and the Lebanese Army Intelligence told Xinhua that the bombing of southern Lebanon came after several missile bursts were fired this afternoon towards northern Israel.

According to the sources, the Israeli artillery shelling stopped without any reports of injuries or losses.

She explained that the rockets were fired at Israel from the town of Qulaileh, noting that it was carried out in two batches, about seven minutes apart, as the number of rockets exceeded 25.

The sources recorded an intense flight of Israeli reconnaissance drones over the western and eastern sectors of southern Lebanon.

It indicated that large forces from the Lebanese army, reinforced with armored vehicles, closed the area from which the rockets were launched in the Qulaileh axis, and began a wide search campaign in search of the missile launchers and launchers.

A state of extreme tension prevails on both sides of the Lebanese-Israeli border, as a large-scale alert was recorded for the Lebanese army, which worked to conduct intensive armored patrols on the border line, in coordination with the United Nations forces operating in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL).

The mutual shelling comes on the heels of an outbreak of escalating tension over the past two days and clashes between the Israeli police and Palestinian worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.