Israel-Hezbollah latest: Iran vows to carry on fighting after Hezbollah successor ‘targeted in Beirut blast’
Israeli strike lands just outside perimeter of Beirut airport as Lebanon offensive continues
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Iran has warned it will not back down from Israel after the Jewish state reportedly targeted the successor of Tehran-backed Hezbollah’s leader Nasrallah Hassan in Lebanon.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said his country, and his regional proxies across the Middle East, would carry on fighting Israel as tensions escalate across the region.
“The brilliant action of our armed forces a couple of nights ago was completely legal and legitimate”, Khamenei said of a massive missile barrage which saw over 100 rockets launched at Israel earlier in the week.
It comes after Beirut was rocked by huge explosions amid reports senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine, regarded as the militia’s next leader, was targeted in Israeli strikes.
Civilians were fleeing the series of massive blasts in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Thursday night, with state media reporting there were more than 10 consecutive airstrikes.
Iran’s “axis of resistance” comprises a group of violent proxies across Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon and Palestine, coordinated by Iran’s Quds Force, the foreign arm of the IRGC.
The Quds Force’s aim is to export Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution abroad and is opposed to any US or Israeli influence in the Middle East.
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What are Israel and Iran’s attack and defence capabilities?
Israeli military says it killed head of Hamas network in West Bank's Tulkarm
The Israeli military said early on Friday it killed the head of the Hamas network in a strike on West Bank's Tulkarm.
In a statement, the military identified the Hamas operative as Zahi Yaser Abd al-Razeq Oufi.
Israeli strike hits outside perimeter of Beirut airport, transport ministry source says
At least one Israeli strike hit outside the perimeter of Beirut's international airport early on Friday, according to a source in Lebanon's ministry of transport and public works.
A series of loud explosions were heard near Lebanon's Beirut airport, with smoke seen nearby after jets were heard overhead, Reuters witnesses said.
Israel’s ambassador to UN: ‘We have a lot of options with Iran'
Israel has a lot of options when it comes to striking back at Iran in response to its missile attacks earlier this week, the country's ambassador to the United Nations told CNN on Thursday.
"We have a lot of options ... so it's (up to) us to decide where and when we want to attack, but they are vulnerable. They know that," said Danny Danon.
G7 statement renews calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza
The G7 statement renewed calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the leaders vowed to "continue to be in close contact with all actors" to seek to restore peace and stability.
It added: "We are also deeply concerned about the situation in Lebanon. We recall the need for a cessation of hostilities as soon as possible to create space for a diplomatic solution along the Blue Line, consistent with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.
"This is the only path to durably de-escalate tensions, stabilise the Israel-Lebanon border, fully restore the sovereignty, territorial integrity and stability of Lebanon, and return displaced citizens to their homes with safety and security on both sides.
"We urge all actors to protect civilian populations. We are committed to providing humanitarian assistance to address the urgent needs of civilians in Lebanon."
At least 14 killed in Israeli strike on Tulkarm in West Bank, Palestinian Health ministry says
At least 14 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli strike on the Tulkarm refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Thursday.
The Israeli military earlier said in a statement that it had conducted a strike on Tulkarm, without providing more details.
The Palestinian Red Crescent, separately, said that at least five people were killed in the strike on Tulkarm.
Violence has surged in the West Bank since the start of the war in Gaza, with almost daily sweeps by Israeli forces that have involved thousands of arrests and regular gunbattles between security forces and Palestinian fighters.
Israeli military conducts strike on Tulkarm in Occupied West Bank, statement says
The Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday that it has conducted a strike on the West Bank city of Tulkarm.
G7 leaders warn of ‘dangerous cycle of attacks’ leading to ‘uncontrollable escalation’ in Middle East
G7 leaders warned of a "dangerous cycle of attacks" leading to "uncontrollable escalation" in the Middle East as conflict spirals in the region.
In a joint statement released on Thursday, they expressed "deep concern" about the deteriorating situation and called for a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon.
"We, the leaders of the G7, express deep concern over the deteriorating situation in the Middle East and condemn in the strongest terms Iran's direct military attack against Israel, which constitutes a serious threat to regional stability," it said.
"We unequivocally reiterate our commitment to the security of Israel. Iran's seriously destabilising actions throughout the Middle East through terrorist proxies and armed groups - including the Houthis, Hezbollah, and Hamas - as well as Iran-aligned militia groups in Iraq, must stop. Yesterday we discussed co-ordinated efforts and actions to avoid escalation in the area.
"A dangerous cycle of attacks and retaliation risks fuelling uncontrollable escalation in the Middle East, which is in no-one's interest. Therefore, we call on all regional players to act responsibly and with restraint. We encourage all parties to engage constructively to de-escalate the current tensions. International humanitarian law must be respected."
As he pursues a fight on five fronts, does Netanyahu even want peace?
One year on from the invasion led by Hamas terrorists that has been called the greatest trauma in Israel’s history, in which 1,200 Israelis were killed and more than 200 taken hostage, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government claims sudden success.
For much of the past year, it has been accused by Israelis of failing to defeat Hamas, capture its leaders or return the hostages. The 7 October attacks left the reputation of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the intelligence agencies in tatters. Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza, which has led to the deaths of more than 40,000 Palestinians, has shredded its international reputation.
In just two weeks, Israel has killed the Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, destroyed the communications network of the group, and now, sent forces into southern Lebanon. Netanyahu has vowed to retaliate for Iran’s missile strikes on 1 October (which were, in turn, retaliation for the assassination of Nasrallah).
Bronwen Maddox writes:
As he pursues a fight on five fronts, does Netanyahu even want peace?
It certainly doesn’t seem to look that way, writes Bronwen Maddox, who wonders whether Israel – for all its tactical victories – has any long-term strategy at all
Israel orders evacuation of Lebanese communities north of UN buffer zone
The Israeli military has ordered the evacuation of villages and towns in southern Lebanon that are north of a United Nations-declared buffer zone established after the 2006 war.
The warnings issued on Thursday signalled a possible broadening of Israel's incursion into southern Lebanon, which until now has been confined to areas close to the border.
Israel has told people to leave Nabatieh, a provincial capital, and other communities north of the Litani River, which formed the northern edge of the border zone established by the UN Security Council after the 2006 war in a resolution that both sides accuse the other of violating.
Just after the warning, the Lebanese Red Cross said an Israeli strike wounded four of its paramedics and killed a Lebanese army soldier as they were evacuating wounded people from the south.
It says the convoy near the village of Taybeh, which was accompanied by Lebanese troops, was targeted on Thursday despite co-ordinating its movements with UN peacekeepers.
It came after Lebanon's health ministry has said that at least nine people had been killed in an Israeli strike in central Beirut.
It also said it is running DNA tests on remains they have obtained to identify others.
Civilians bear brunt in 'catastrophic' Lebanon conflict, UN official says
Civilians are bearing the brunt of a "truly catastrophic" situation in Lebanon, a senior UN official said, urging respect for the rules of war nearly two weeks since Israel launched a major offensive against the armed group Hezbollah.
With around 1 million people in Lebanon impacted, Imran Riza, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, said the pace of displacement since Sept. 23 had exceeded worst case scenarios, and too much damage was being done to civilian infrastructure.
"What we saw from 23 September on is truly catastrophic," Riza said in an interview with Reuters on Thursday. He was referring to the day when Israel dramatically ramped up airstrikes in Lebanon, killing more than 500 people in a single day, according to Lebanese government figures.
"The level of trauma, the level of fear amongst the population, has been extreme," he said.
Israel says its campaign against the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah aims to secure the return home of Israelis evacuated from areas near the Lebanese border as a result of nearly a year of Hezbollah fire into northern Israel.
The Lebanese government says around 1.2 million people have been displaced by Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, the southern suburbs of Beirut and other parts of the country. Some have been killed in Israeli strikes after having been displaced.
"You've got people being displaced from one place to another, thinking they were going to a safe place, and then that being struck," Riza said.
Riza said 97 medical and emergency workers had been killed - the majority of them in the last 10 days. There has been too much damage to civilian infrastructure, and civilians have been "bearing the great brunt of what's been going on", he said.
He noted that international humanitarian law requires that humanitarians be allowed to access people in need, and that civilian infrastructure and water systems be protected.
"This is what we call for when we're saying respect the rules of war in this," he said. "Unfortunately, we are seeing a situation where we have to go back to everybody and advocate for these basics in terms of protecting civilians."
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