Special report: Palestine-Israel Conflicts

    BEIRUT, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Israeli warplanes are carrying out intensive flights over the western sector in southern Lebanon, pan-Arab al-Jazeera TV reported Thursday.

    The Lebanese army is searching the area where the Katyusha rockets were launched on Thursday morning against Israel, while UN troops intensified patrols in southern Lebanon.

    Schools in southern Lebanese towns bordering Israel were closed.

    Security sources told local New TV that two rockets were launched from southern Lebanon on northern Israeli towns of Naharia and Galeli, wounding four Israelis.

    In response, the Israeli army fired six rockets on Hamra, al-Jiben, and Tayr Harfa towns in southern Lebanon, from where the rockets were launched.

    It is unclear yet who is responsible for launching the rockets from southern Lebanon.

    But Israel ruled out the involvement of Hezbollah in the rocket launching, al-Jazeera said.

    Lebanese officials have also ruled out any Hezbollah's intentions to open a front from Lebanon.

    Hezbollah said that they have no knowledge about the rocket launching.

    Unnamed military sources said that the rockets fired into northern Israel from Lebanon could have been set off by Palestinian groups.

    Over 700 Palestinians have been killed and more than 3,000 others wounded in Gaza since Israel launched intensive air strikes against Gaza on Dec. 27 and ground operations on Jan. 3 in retaliation for rocket attacks by Gaza militants led by Hamas.