Israel-Lebanon live: Netanyahu urges ‘immediate’ removal of UN peacekeepers in Lebanon after Israeli fire
An Israeli tank fired on UN headquarters in southern Lebanon on Thursday, the organisation said
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Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on the UN chief Antonio Guterres to remove peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon “immediately”.
“Mr Secretary General, get the UNIFIL forces out of harm’s way. It should be done right now, immediately,” Netanyahu said in a video statement issued by his office.
It comes as 40 nations, including the UK, “strongly” condemn the attacks on peacekeepers, after three were injured by gunfire.
In Gaza, an Israeli strike has killed a family of eight in the Nuseirat refugee camp, Palestinian medical officials said.
It killed the parents and their six children, who ranged in age from eight to 23, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in nearby Deir al-Balah, where the bodies were taken.
On Saturday, at least 19 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes in the Jabalia city and refugee camp in northern Gaza, the Hamas-run civil defence agency told the AFP news agency.
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Israeli military says it has hit 200 Hezbollah targets over the weekend
Israel’s military said it continues to operate in southern Lebanon to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure.
“Over the past day, the IAF (air force) has struck approximately 200 Hezbollah targets deep in Lebanon and southern Lebanon, including terrorist cells, launchers, anti-tank missile posts, and terrorist infrastructure sites,” it said.
Israel also said five launches that crossed from Lebanon were intercepted by the air force.
The Israeli military added in a statement on Sunday that one of its reservists and an officer were severely injured in two separate incidents during combat in southern Lebanon, with additional soldiers suffering light to moderate injuries.
The Israeli military also said that it captured a Hezbollah militant in southern Lebanon after discovering an underground tunnel leading to a hideout, where they found an area with weapons and supplies for extended use.
Netanyahu urges peacekeepers to leave Lebanon combat zones
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the United Nations on Sunday to evacuate troops in its UNIFIL peacekeeping force from combat areas in Lebanon.
Netanyahu said the military had asked the UN to evacuate the soldiers repeatedly, adding that their presence in the area made them hostages of Hezbollah.
Israeli foreign minister reiterates UN chief is persona non grata over Iran stance
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz reiterated on Sunday that the country considers UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres persona non grata due to his failure to condemn Iran’s missile attack and what Katz described as antisemitic and anti-Israel conduct.
Katz had said on 2 October that he was barring UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres from entering the country because he had not “unequivocally” condemned the missile attack.
Iran fired more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel on 1 October amid an escalation in fighting between Israel and its proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah. Many were intercepted in flight but some penetrated missile defences.
Iran has ‘no red lines’ in defending its people, says foreign minister
Iran has “no red lines” when it comes to defending its people and interests, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in a post on X on Sunday, as the region braces for Israel’s retaliation following Iran’s recent missile attack.
US believes Israel has narrowed down targets in Iran for retaliation
US officials believe Israel has narrowed down targets in its potential response to Iran’s attack this month to military and energy infrastructure, NBC reported on Saturday.
The Middle East remains on high alert for further escalation in a year of war as Israel battles Iran-backed groups Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Tehran, a major oil producer, has threatened Israel with severe consequences if the Islamic Republic is attacked.
Israel has repeatedly said it will respond to Iran’s missile barrage on Oct. 1, which was launched in retaliation for Israel’s military operations in Gaza and Lebanon and the killings of a string of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.
There is no indication that Israel will target nuclear facilities or carry out assassinations, the NBC report said, citing unnamed U.S. officials and adding that Israel has not made final decisions about how and when to act.
US and Israeli officials said a response could come during the current Yom Kippur holiday, according to the report.
Israeli officials have not publicly commented on the report.
Paramedics searching for casualties after Israeli strikes in Lebanon
The Lebanese Red Cross said paramedics were searching for casualties in the wreckage of a house destroyed by an Israeli air strike in southern Lebanon on Sunday when a second strike left four paramedics with concussion and damaged two ambulances.
It said the rescue operation had been co-ordinated with UN peacekeepers, who informed the Israeli side.
Israeli forces have repeatedly fired upon first responders and UN peacekeepers since the start of the ground operation.
The military has accused Hezbollah of using ambulances to ferry fighters and weapons, without providing evidence. Lebanon’s Health Ministry denies the allegations.
Ground invasions in Gaza has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians
Israel’s bombardment and ground invasions of Gaza have killed more than 42,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and left much of the territory in ruins.
Palestinian medical officials do not say whether those killed by Israeli forces are militants or civilians, but say women and children make up more than half the fatalities.
Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.
Israeli forces target Jabaliya refugee camp
In northern Gaza, Israeli air and ground forces have been attacking Jabaliya, where the military says militants have regrouped. Over the past year, Israeli forces have repeatedly returned to the built-up refugee camp.
Israel has ordered the full evacuation of northern Gaza, including Gaza City. An estimated 400,000 people remain in the north after a mass evacuation ordered in the opening weeks of the war.
The Palestinians fear Israel intends to permanently depopulate the north to establish military bases or Jewish settlements.
The military confirmed on Saturday that hospitals were included in the evacuation orders but said it had not set a specific timetable.
Families forced to leave homes in Gaza City
Israeli forces widened their raid into northern Gaza, and tanks reached the north edge of Gaza City, pounding some districts of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, residents said, forcing many families to leave their homes.
Residents said Israeli forces have effectively isolated Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, and Beit Lahiya in the far north of the enclave from Gaza City, blocking access between the two areas except upon their permission for families willing to leave the three towns, heeding evacuation orders.
Gaza’s health ministry said the eight-day-old Israeli incursions in the north have so far killed dozens of Palestinians, with dozens of others feared dead on roads and under rubble of their houses, beyond the reach of medical teams.
Many Jabalia residents posted on social media platforms: “We will not leave, we die, and we don’t leave.”
Israeli strike kills family of eight in Gaza
An Israeli strike on the central Gaza Strip has killed a family of eight, Palestinian medical officials said.
The strike came as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants and pushed for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people from the north of the territory.
Israel is also waging an air and ground campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and is expected to strike Iran in retaliation for a missile attack earlier this month, though it has not said how or when.
The strike in Gaza late Saturday hit a home in the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing parents and their six children, who ranged in age from eight to 23, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in nearby Deir al-Balah, where the bodies were taken.
It said another seven people were wounded, including two women and a child in critical condition. An Associated Press reporter counted the bodies and filmed funeral prayers held at the hospital.
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