City comes to a standstill as rockets rain

ISRAEL’S third-largest city, Haifa, was plunged into panic, then silence yesterday, following the deadliest missile attack by Hezbollah on Israel since fighting began last week.

Though it wasn’t the first time Haifa was hit in the conflict, residents said they were surprised by the swiftness and violence of the attack, in which advanced Iranian-made missiles showered down on the city, officials said.

The eight killed were standing on a platform next to a train in a maintenance depot when a rocket ripped through the roof above them and exploded, leaving a gaping hole and huge sheets of aluminum swinging in the wind above. Puddles of blood pooled below.