Israel strikes area near Lebanon’s parliament as food trucks looted in Gaza
Airstrike kills five people in area which also houses local UN headquarters and prime minister’s office
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.At least five people were killed in the latest Israeli attack on a densely populated residential area in Beirut even as Lebanon and Hezbollah were reported to have agreed to a ceasefire proposal.
Israeli forces fired two missiles at the Zoqaq al-Blat neighbourhood which houses the local UN headquarters, Lebanon's parliament and prime minister's office, state-run National News Agency reported.
The strikes came as the US said it was working on a ceasefire proposal that would remove Israeli forces from Lebanon and push Hezbollah far from the border.
Ali Hassan Khalil, aide to parliament speaker Nabih Berri, said Lebanon had delivered its written response to the US ambassador’s proposal.
"Lebanon presented its comments on the paper in a positive atmosphere," Mr Khalil told Reuters, declining to offer further details.
Mr Berri, a Hezbollah ally mediating for the group, was expected to meet with US envoy Amos Hochstein in Beirut on Tuesday.
Israel has dramatically escalated its bombardment of Lebanon since September, vowing to severely weaken Hezbollah, which has been firing rockets and drones at Israel since it launched its air and ground assault on Gaza over a year ago.
The Israeli attacks have killed over 3,500 people across Lebanon, according to the nation's health ministry. Hezbollah’s rockets have killed at least 77 people, including 31 soldiers, according to Israel. The Lebanese group has also killed more than 50 Israeli soldiers over the course of their ground offensive in the country.
In Gaza, meanwhile, several people were killed in an operation targeting suspected gangs accused of looting dozens of trucks bringing aid to the battered and besieged Palestinian territory.
The interior ministry run by Hamas said on Monday that 20 people were killed “in a security operation carried out by security forces in cooperation with tribal committees”.
The looting “severely affected society and led to signs of famine in southern Gaza”, the ministry said, adding that the operation was the start of a broader campaign to tackle the problem.
Nearly 97 trucks carrying food aid were looted in Gaza over the weekend, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees Unrwa said.
Unrwa commissioner general Philippe Lazzarini said there was a "total breakdown of civil order" and there was "no longer local capacity of people to escort the envoy".
"This has completely gone."
The drivers of the truck were forced at gunpoint to unload the aid packages, the agency said in a post on X.
“The Israeli authorities continue to disregard their legal obligations under international law to ensure the population's basic needs are met and to facilitate the safe delivery of aid,” it added.
Almost all of Gaza's roughly 2.3 million people rely on international aid for survival and doctors and aid groups say malnutrition is rampant. But only about 34,000 tonnes of food entered the Palestinian territory in October, according to Israeli data.
A UN special committee found that Israeli policies and practices in Gaza are “consistent with the characteristics of genocide”, such as using starvation as a weapon and causing mass casualties.
The incident “highlights the severity of access challenges of bringing aid into southern and central Gaza," Louise Wateridge, senior emergency officer for Unrwa, told Reuters.
“The urgency of the crisis cannot be overstated; without immediate intervention, severe food shortages are set to worsen, further endangering the lives of over 2 million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive.”
Israel's war on Gaza has killed more than 43,000 people, according to the territory’s health ministry, since Hamas attacked Israel last October and killed around 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostage.
Meanwhile, leaders of the G20 nations who are meeting in Brazil expressed “deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip” as well as the escalation in Lebanon and called for a ceasefire.
They highlighted “the human suffering and negative impacts of the war” and called for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments