[🇱🇧] Lebanon - Israel Conflict -2024

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Here are the latest developments in the region:

• Israel’s retaliation against Iran: Israel is closely coordinating with the United States as it prepares to strike back at Iran but will make its own, independent decisions about how to retaliate, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told CNN. Even as the US has made clear it opposes a strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, Gallant said Israel has not ruled out any of its options. “Everything is on the table,” Gallant said.
• The latest from Gaza: Israel’s military says it has encircled Jabalya in northern Gaza and launched a new ground operation after seeing signs of Hamas rebuilding there, despite nearly a year of fighting in the territory. Elsewhere, Israeli airstrikes targeted a school and mosque that were converted into shelters in central Gaza, killing at least 25 people and overwhelming nearby Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital with casualties. The IDF claimed Hamas was operating at the complex.
• October 7 anniversary: The Israeli military has reinforced soldiers near the Gaza Strip ahead of the ceremonial events that will mark one year since the Hamas attacks. Additional troops have been deployed at border communities for both “defensive and offensive scenarios,” according to a statement by the IDF. Meanwhile, there have been more demonstrations, marches and memorials across the world ahead of the anniversary — both mourning the attacks’ victims and demanding an end to the ensuing war.
• Iran cancels flights: Flights at Iran’s airports will be canceled overnight Sunday into Monday, and a portion of the country’s airspace will be closed down due to “military exercises” nightly until at least October 9, according to Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization. The Iranian government did not elaborate on the decision, but it comes ahead of the anniversary of the Hamas attacks and as Israel mulls its retaliation.
• Lebanon delays start of school year: Lebanon has postponed the start of the school year until November 2 as a protective measure amid the escalating fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Some 400,000 students and 40,000 teachers have been displaced from their homes across the country following the fighting, Lebanese education minister Abbas Halabi said.

 

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Strike near historic Roman ruins in Lebanon prompts warning from local governor​

From CNN’s Charbel Mallo

Smoke billows following an Israeli airstrike near the ruins of the ancient Roman Temple of Bacchus in Baalbek, Lebanon, on October 6.

Nidal Solh/AFP/Getty Images

An Israeli strike landed close to Roman ruins in the Lebanese city of Baalbek, raising warnings from local officials on the structural integrity of the site.

The Israeli attack did not target the historic complex, Baalbek-Hermel Governor Bachir Khodr said — but it struck nearby.

“It is 500 to 700 meters away from it, but raids near it will have negative repercussions on it,” Khodr said in a post on X Sunday.

Khodr shared an image showing smoke rising behind what appears to be the monoliths of the ancient complex. It is unclear what the Israeli military was targeting in the area. CNN has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces.

More on the historic significance of site:
The ancient complex — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — contains the ruins of some of the largest and best-preserved Roman temples. It has survived many natural disasters and conflicts over centuries, most recently the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict and a 15-year civil war that started in 1975.

The city of Baalbek has a Hezbollah presence and is located northeast of Lebanon. It has been targeted by Israel several times over the past year.

The Israeli military has been carrying out its current bombing campaign in Lebanon at an unprecedented intensity. The Lebanese government says strikes have killed more than 1,400 people and forced hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee residential areas, where the IDF says the militant group is operating.

 

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Hezbollah rockets hit northern Israeli city of Haifa​

David Gritten
BBC News

Getty Images

One rocket hit a roundabout near a supermarket and several apartment blocks in eastern Haifa

The northern Israeli port city of Haifa was hit by about five rockets fired by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah late on Sunday, causing damage and injuring eight people, Israeli authorities say.

A spokesman for Haifa's municipality said it was the first time the city had been targeted since the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Israeli military said it was investigating how its air defences failed to intercept the rockets. Hezbollah said it targeted a military base south of Haifa.

Another person was injured when a barrage of rockets hit the town of Tiberias, which is located to the east on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

Meanwhile, Israeli warplanes carried out a new round of air strikes in the Lebanese capital. Beirut, hitting what the military said were Hezbollah targets.

The military also said a third division had joined its invasion of southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah said its fighters were targeting Israeli troops in and around border villages.

Israel’s government has pledged to make it safe for tens of thousands of displaced residents to return to their homes near the Lebanese border after a year of cross-border fighting sparked by the Gaza war.

The hostilities have escalated steadily since Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel in support of Palestinians on 8 October 2023, the day after its ally Hamas’s deadly attack on southern Israel.

Hezbollah has remained defiant despite suffering a series of devastating blows in recent weeks, insisting on Monday that it was confident in its ability to “repel the [Israeli] aggression”.


According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Hezbollah fired more than 135 rockets into northern Israel on Sunday.

Approximately five projectiles crossed from Lebanon after air raid sirens sounded in the Carmel and Bay areas of Haifa at 23:22 local time (20:22 GMT), an IDF statement said.

“Interceptors were fired. Fallen projectiles were identified in the area. The incident is under review,” it added.

Eliran Tal, spokesman for the Haifa municipality, told the BBC that two neighbourhoods were hit.

BBC Verify geolocated CCTV footage showing the moment that one of the rockets hit a roundabout near a supermarket and several apartment blocks in the west of the city.

In another video, emergency services and bystanders are seen inspecting a crater and piles of rubble and earth at the scene.

Tal Rosen, a member of the emergency services, told Reuters news agency that he had been inside his home about 500m (1,640ft) away when he heard an explosion.

“In the beginning, we didn't find any injuries and then I saw in this building,” he said, pointing to damaged windows on the side of a nearby apartment block.

“There were shards of glass in this building. I went inside and I found four people [with] minor to moderate [injuries]."

Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) ambulance service said it treated a 13-year-old boy in a moderate condition with shrapnel injuries to his head, as well as a 22-year-old man in a moderate condition with both a blast injury and a head injury from falling through a window.

Hezbollah said it launched "a salvo of Fadi 1 rockets at the Carmel base south of Haifa” late on Sunday in retaliation for the Israeli air strike that killed its leader Hassan Nasrallah last month.

Mr Tal dismissed Hezbollah's claim, saying it was "an attack on civilian population".

He estimated that 95% of Haifa's population of 280,000 was staying put.

"With missile threats from the north, it is not an easy period of time. But we are strong," he said.

"We went through a lot of tragedy like this - and I hope the IDF and the leadership will do their best to push the enemy far from the border."

The MDA also reported that a man in his 20s was in a serious but stable condition and suffering from shrapnel injuries to his chest and abdomen following a separate rocket attack on the town of Tiberias, about 50km (30 miles) to the east.

The IDF said approximately 15 projectiles were identified as crossing from Lebanon at the same time as the Haifa attack. Some were intercepted while others fell in the area, it added.

The Israeli police said some buildings and properties were damaged.

 

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Israeli forces proximity to Irish troops in Lebanon 'concerning'​

EPA

The IDF are a few hundred metres from camp UN-652

Israeli Defence Forces' (IDF) proximity to an outpost where a number of Irish troops are stationed is "concerning", said the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Andrea Tenenti from UNIFL has said that the IDF are currently a few hundred metres from camp UN-652, she said to Irish Broadcaster RTÉ.

The proximity of the IDF to Irish UN troops has caused high levels of concern within United Nations Headquarters as fighting continues between Israel and Hezbollah.

President Michael D Higgins said it is "outrageous" that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has "threatened" UNIFIL peacekeepers and attempted to have them evacuated from the villages they are defending in Lebanon.

A convoy is set to de-escaluate the situation​

Mr Tenenti, who is in Beirut, told RTÉ that efforts are being made in New York to deal with the Israeli permanent mission to the UN in order to get IDF soldiers to move away from the area as their presence compromises the safety of UNIFIL troops.

If the IDF refuse to leave the area, the [UN] Security Council will decide how to move forward, Mr Tenenti added.

Mr Tenenti explained that troops at the outpost have supplies for a couple of weeks and a convoy is heading to the area and de-escalate the situation.

He said there is also concern for troops from other countries as there are 29 other positions that are based near the "blue line".

Drawn by the United Nations, the Blue Line is the 120km demarcation line where Israeli pulled back to when they left south Lebanon in 2000.

 

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'Ireland's position is clear'​

Also condemning the attack on the 7 October is Tánaiste Micheál Martin who says that the violence must end and a political process needs to begin.

He said: "I think today of the hostages still in Gaza and their families who desperately want them home. I call again for their immediate release,

"I recognise the hurt and sorrow of the Israeli people, and of the Jewish and Israeli communities here in Ireland and throughout the world.

"I express our profound sympathy to all who are mourning loved ones brutally murdered, and think especially of the family and friends of Kim Damti."

Martin added: "It is not possible to view this anniversary in isolation from the justifiable outrage at the death and destruction suffered by ordinary Palestinians in Gaza over the past 12 months.

"Ireland's position is clear and on the record. The violence must stop.

"There must be an immediate ceasefire and hostage release deal, and a massive scaling up of humanitarian assistance into Gaza."

 

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Hezbollah says it's attacking Israeli troops along the border​

As we've been reporting, as well as the rockets being fired into northern Israel and continued air strikes in southern Lebanon, there's also on-the-ground fighting along the border in Lebanon.

Israel expanded its ground invasion earlier this week, attacking in western as well as eastern areas.

Hezbollah says it fired a missile at Israeli troops trying to push into the Labbouneh area, in the west.

And much further east, it says it also fired a rocket barrage at Israeli soldiers heading towards the twin border villages of Mays al-Jabal and Mouhaybib.

 

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What's the latest?​

Getty Images

An ambulance lies destroyed in the rubble of an air strike in Kafra, Lebanon

• Hezbollah rocket attack: Two Israelis were killed during a rocket attack on the border town of Kiryat Shmona - Hezbollah said it fired rockets at the area
• On-the-ground: Fighting has been reported by Israel and Hezbollah along the border. Hezbollah says it pushed back the IDF in western Lebanon
• Air strikes: The IDF said this morning it's hit 185 Hezbollah sites in the last 24 hours. Explosions have been seen near Tyre and in the Khiam area
• Displaced people: The UN says a quarter of Lebanese territory is under evacuation order, with displaced people living on the streets and beaches of Beirut
• Biden-Netanyahu phone call: US President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to speak to later today.

 

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Hezbollah says it fired 'rocket salvo' at border town​

Reuters
A photo sent to us in the last hour shows smoke rising above Kiryat Shmona
We just reported that two people have been killed in Kiryat Shmona, a border town in the north-east of Israel.

Hezbollah has released a statement confirming they targeted "a gathering of Israeli enemy forces" in the same area with "a rocket salvo" at 14:00 local time (12:00 BST).

 

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More rockets fired at Haifa, says Israel​

Image source, MDA
A photo shared by Israel's emergency medical service of the scene after people were hit by shrapnel
Israel says the Haifa area has been hit by rockets again today, marking the third consecutive day of attacks on Israel's third-largest city.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says that about 40 "projectiles" - which usually means rockets - have crossed from Lebanon into Israel, targeting areas around Upper Galilee and Haifa Bay. While some were intercepted, several landed in the region, the IDF says.

According to Israel’s emergency services Magen David Adom (MDA), six people are injured. Five have been injured by shrapnel, including a 16-year-old boy, and a motorcyclist suffered minor injuries in a traffic accident during the alarm.

Haifa has a population of about a quarter of a million. It was hit on Monday for the first time in 18 years, and was hit again yesterday.

 

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Israel can weaken Hezbollah - but its ideology will persist​

Hugo Bachega
Middle East correspondent, in Beirut

Reute

Benjamin Netanyahu, pictured last month

Last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video with a message to the Lebanese people: "Free your country from Hezbollah," he said.

But here, his words are unlikely to have any resonance.

There is a long history of Israeli violence in Lebanon, and resentment and suspicion run deep. And, no matter the scale of the damage that Israel manages to inflict on Hezbollah, the group will not be entirely destroyed.

In Lebanon, Hezbollah is more than a militia, it is a political party with representation in parliament, and a social movement with significant support.

Israel may be able to weaken the group, but its ideology will persist – as it did after the wars of the past.

Now, because this is a country full of divisions, Hezbollah opponents will not be disappointed to see a degraded Hezbollah.

This is a group often described as a state with a state, powerful and influential. Critics say it is acts to defend its own interests – and those of Iran, its main supporter.

Long term, there is the real risk that Hezbollah supporters, feeling humiliated, may become more radicalised and isolated. This could exacerbate tensions in this country, which endured a civil war between 1975-1990.

This is something that people are starting to talk about - the future of this country and what may happen after the war is over.