Israel-Hezbollah latest: Israeli forces ‘conducting Lebanon raids’ ahead of possible full ground invasion
Defence minister tells troops near border that Israel ‘will use all the forces from the air, sea and land’ as an airstrike hits Beirut for the first time in 18 years
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Israeli special forces are said to be conducting small-group raids into southern Lebanon to gather intelligence on Hezbollah positions, with Israel’s defence minister hinting at a ground invasion.
Yoav Gallant was quoted by Iasraeli media as telling armoured corps troops near the Lebanon border: “To return the resident of the north safely to their homes we will activate all our capabilities - including you.”
"We will use all the forces from the air, sea and land," he added.
It comes as the deputy leader of Hezbollah vowed to be ready for an Israeli invasion.
In his first speech since Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah over the weekend, the group’s deputy chief Naim Qassem said he was confident Hezbollah could push Israeliforces back like during the war in 2006.
“We are confident the Israeli enemy will not achieve its aims,” Qassem said. “We will confront any possibility and are ready if Israel decides to enter by land.”
Israel intensified its airstrikes on Monday, hitting central Beirut for the first time since 2006, while also killing Hamas’s leader in Lebanon in the southern city of Tyre.
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Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out a US-led ceasefire deal
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Our travel correspondent Simon Calder answers your questions on evacuating Lebanon
Could an airlift be organised by the UK?
In theory, although the UK government has not raised that possibility. But it is possible that evacuation aircraft may be sent in by the UK as other countries have done.
Germany has sent an Airbus A321 to repatriate citizens to Berlin, while the Bulgarian government has dispatched a smaller A319 jet for an emergency flight from Beirut to Sofia. Jordan’s government sent a military transport plane.
"Were the UK to launch such an operation, it would most likely be a shuttle between Larnaca in Cyprus and Beirut. The two airports are only 129 miles apart, representing a total flight time of around half-an-hour.
"It is possible one of the government jets could be used, or instead a military transport airport deployed."
Can people leave by land or sea?
The FCDO “advises against leaving Lebanon through land border crossings”.
The border with Israel is closed. The border with Syria is open, but the Foreign Office advises “against all travel to Syria due to the ongoing conflict and unpredictable security conditions”.
Some travellers may decide to risk the journey to Damascus, because the airport in the Syrian capital is running normally – with flights to Kuwait City, Abu Dhabi or Sharjah (adjoining Dubai) probably the best bet, due to easier connections to the UK.
But some British nationals are travelling to the northern border of Lebanon, taking a taxi for around 100 miles through Syria to Turkey and flying back from Antakya airport via Istanbul.
The obvious destination for the evacuation by sea of British citizens would be Cyprus.
At their closest the two countries are 100 miles apart. But the distance from the key port of Tripoli in Lebanon and Limassol in Cyprus is about 160 miles, representing typically seven hours’ sailing.
Ferries formerly ran between Tripoli and the Turkish port of Mersin, but no longer operate.
In pictures: Lebanese civilians flee Israeli strikes
Lebanon PM ready to implement 2006 deal ending Hezbollah’s armed presence
The Lebanese government is ready to fully implement a United Nations resolution that had aimed to end Hezbollah‘s armed presence south of the Litani River as part of an agreement to stop war with Israel, caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati has said.
Mikati said Lebanon was ready to fully implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and deploy the army south of the river, which lies about 30 km (around 20 miles) from Lebanon’s southern border.
Mikati also said he and House Speaker Nabih Berri had agreed that electing a new president to end a near two-year vacancy at the top post would only happen after a ceasefire took hold, in comments delivered after the pair met in Beirut.
UK says it is doing ‘everything we can’ to help Brits evacuate Lebanon
The British government has said it is doing “everything we can” to secure seats on commercial flights as it reiterated calls for British nationals to leave Lebanon, PA Media reports.
The prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “The prime minister has been very, very clear that British nationals should leave now, particularly whilst commercial flights are still available.
“We’re doing everything we can to work with commercial airlines to maximise capacity because we want people to leave, and I understand that there have been extra Middle East Airlines flights leaving Lebanon over the weekend, another scheduled for Tuesday and we have secured seats for British nationals on those flights.”
The spokesperson added: “What we’re focused on at the moment is securing extra spaces on commercial flights for those who do want to leave and reiterating our calls for those to leave and to register their presence with us and book the first available flights. We’re also working to send a rapid deployment team to bolster the efforts of our embassy in supporting British nationals who want to leave.”
Asked why an evacuation has not started, the spokesperson said: “We’ve been clear whilst there are commercial flights available, British nationals can and, indeed, should leave.”
The spokesperson also pointed to the deployment of 700 troops, alongside Border Force and Foreign Office officials, to Cyprus to continue work on “all contingency options and plan for a range of scenarios in the region”.
Pictured: Israel strikes Yemeni port controlled by Houthis
Death toll from Israeli strike on Ain Deleb hits 45, Lebanese ministry says
The death toll from an Israeli strike on the southern Lebanese town of Ain Deleb has risen to 45, Lebanon‘s health ministry has said.
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