Lebanon is reeling after 32 people have now been killed in two days of device explosions across Beirut and other cities.
Hand-held walkie-talkie radios used by armed group Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon's south on Wednesday, stoking tensions after similar explosions of the group’s pagers the day before.
Lebanon's health ministry said 20 people were killed and more than 450 injured in the second attack in Beirut's suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, while the death toll from the explosions the previous day rose to 12, including two children, with nearly 3,000 injured.
Israeli officials have not commented on the blasts, but security sources said Israel's spy agency Mossad was responsible.
"We are opening a new phase in the war. It requires courage, determination and perseverance from us," Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said, adding that his country’s military focus is shifting to its northern border.
Wednesday marked Lebanon’s deadliest day since cross-border fighting erupted between Hezbollah and Israel nearly a year ago, heightening fears of an escalation into a full-blown regional war.
The Iran-backed militant group has vowed retaliation after the operations appeared to throw them into disarray.
Key Points
- More explosions heard in Lebanon as walkie-talkies targeted
- Death toll rises to 20 after Wednesday explosions
- Japanese company denies making Hezbollah's exploding walkie-talkies
- Israeli security services arrest Israeli man over alleged Iranian-backed assassination plot
- Israeli forces strike Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon amid escalating tensions
Arms exports allow Israel to defend itself from Hezbollah, says trade secretary
10:57
Tara Cobham
Restrictions on UK arms exports to Israel are "fair" and "proportionate", Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has said.
The UK suspended some arms export licences to Israel earlier this month over concerns the country is violating international humanitarian law in Gaza.
Mr Reynolds said the existing arms rules still allow Israel to "defend itself" against Lebanon.
He said the decision on ending about 30 of some 350 arms export licences to Israel "falls to me" and that he takes "personal responsibility" for explaining the impact.
He told LBC: "The findings that were passed to me from the Foreign Office, from the Foreign Secretary, that there was a risk that Israel was not complying with international humanitarian law in relation to detainees and access to aid, mean that I have to act.
"I set the scope of the limitations, the restrictions that we put in place. I did so to restrict those licences to the conflict in Gaza, making sure that Israel can still be in a position to defend itself against Hezbollah and Lebanon."
He added: "The decision we took was fair, was proportionate, was consistent with international law, and fundamentally what we need, what everyone needs in the Middle East, is a ceasefire in that conflict.
"That is in Israel's interest. I think it's in everyone's interest to make sure we get there, but we will always comply with international law as a Government, I think you would expect that of the UK Government.
"But I was cognisant of the risk in the north, from Lebanon, from Hezbollah, and made sure the restrictions we put in place reflected that situation."
Bulgaria to probe company links to pagers that exploded in Lebanon
10:53
Tara Cobham
Bulgaria will investigate a company linked to the sale of pagers to Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah that exploded this week in a coordinated attack, the state security agency said on Thursday.
Bulgaria's state security agency, DANS, said in a statement that it is working with the interior ministry to probe the role of a company registered in Bulgaria, without naming it.
Bulgarian media reports allege that a Sofia-based company called Norta Global Ltd had facilitated the sale of the pagers, which exploded across Lebanon on Tuesday, killing 11 people and wounding 4,000.
Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the link to Norta. Company officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A lawyer that registered the company at an apartment block in Sofia did not respond to Reuters questions.
Images of destroyed pagers analysed by Reuters showed a format consistent with pagers made by Taiwan Gold Apollo. Gold Apollo said on Wednesday that the pagers were made by Budapest-based BAC Consulting.
But Hungarian news site Telex reported that the sale was actually facilitated by Norta, citing sources.
The Bulgarian state security agency said that it did not detect any shipments of the suspected pagers on Bulgarian territory.
Germany has stopped approving war weapons exports to Israel, source says
10:30
Tara Cobham
Germany has put a hold on new exports of weapons of war to Israel while it deals with legal challenges, according to a Reuters analysis of data and a source close to the Economy Ministry.
A source close to the ministry cited a senior government official as saying it had stopped work on approving export licences for arms to Israel due to legal and political pressure from legal cases arguing that such exports from Germany breached humanitarian law.
The Economy Ministry said on Thursday there was no ban on arms exports to Israel and there would not be one, with decisions made case-by-case after careful review, adding that international law, foreign and security policy were key factors in their assessments.
"There is no German arms export boycott against Israel," a spokesperson for government said on Wednesday, commenting on the report.
Last year, Germany approved arms exports to Israel worth 326.5 million euros ($363.5 million), including military equipment and war weapons, a 10-fold increase from 2022, according to data from the Economy Ministry, which approves export licences.
However approvals have dropped this year, with only 14.5 million euros' worth granted from January to Aug. 21, according to data provided by the Economy Ministry in response to a parliamentary question.
Of this, the weapons of war category accounted for only 32,449 euros.
In its defence of two cases, one before the International Court of Justice and one in Berlin brought by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, the government has said no weapons of war have been exported under any licence issued since the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel, apart from spares for long-term contracts, the source added.
No case challenging German arms exports to Israel has yet succeeded, including a case brought by Nicaragua at the ICJ.
Japanese company denies making Hezbollah's exploding walkie-talkies
10:19
Tara Cobham
The Japanese maker of the brand of walkie-talkies linked to explosions targeting the Hezbollah armed group that killed 20 people in Lebanon and injured hundreds of others said it could not have made the exploding devices.
"There’s no way a bomb could have been integrated into one of our devices during manufacturing. The process is highly automated and fast-paced, so there’s no time for such things," Yoshiki Enomoto a director at ICOM told Reuters outside the company's headquarters in Osaka, Japan on Thursday.
The detonation of hand-held radios used by Hezbollah on Wednesday in Beirut's suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, followed a series of electronic pager explosions on Tuesday that killed at least 12 people, including two children, and injured 3,000 others.
ICOM has said it halted production of the radio models identified in the attack a decade ago and that most of those still on sale were counterfeit.
"If it turns out to be counterfeit, then we'll have to investigate how someone created a bomb that looks like our product. If it's genuine, we'll have to trace its distribution to figure out how it ended up there," Enomoto said.
Latest arrest over alleged assassination plot highlights intelligence war running alongside conflict
10:16
Tara Cobham
The arrest of an Israeli citizen on suspicion of involvement in an Iranian-backed assassination plot highlights an intelligence war running alongside the escalating conflict on Israel's border with southern Lebanon.
The arrest over the alleged plot targeting prominent people, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, took place last month, according to a joint statement by Shin Bet and the Israeli police issued on Thursday.
It comes after Shin Bet last week uncovered what it said was a plot by Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to assassinate a former senior defence official, who was subsequently identified as the former army Chief of Staff and Defence Minister Moshe Ya'alon.
Meanwhile, Israel has a long history of intelligence operations in Iran, allegedly including the assassination in July of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas in a Tehran state guesthouse.
Shin Bet said the latest arrest showed the efforts Iran was making to recruit Israelis to gather intelligence and carry out terrorist missions in Israel, including by using individuals with criminal backgrounds.
According to the Shin Bet statement, the plot went back to April this year when the Israeli, who has not been identified, agreed to meet a wealthy businessman living in Iran for business purposes.
After being told by representatives that the businessman, identified only as Adi, could not leave Iran, the Israeli man was smuggled into Iran from eastern Turkey, where he met Adi and others, including a man identified as an Iranian security official, the statement said.
The Iranians proposed that he carry out tasks for Iran including transferring money or a gun, photographing crowded places or threatening other Israeli civilians operating on behalf of Iran who did not carry out the requested missions, it continued.
He returned to Israel but went back to Iran for a second time in August, smuggled in a truck, the statement said.
On the second visit, it said Iranian officials asked him to carry out terrorist attacks for Iran and made proposals for assassinating Netanyahu or Gallant or Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar as well as other operations.
It added that the Israeli man asked for a payment of $1 million, but Iranian officials refused the request, saying however they would remain in touch and paying him 5,000 euros ($5,570.50) for joining the meetings.
Netanyahu accuses Labour of ‘sending mixed messages’ over UK’s support for Israel
09:38
Tara Cobham
Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Labour of “sending mixed messages” over the UK’s support for Israel and of “undermining” his country’s right to self-defence.
The Israeli prime minister also told the Daily Mail that Sir Keir Starmer’s administration has been making “misguided” decisions and is “sending a horrible message” to Hamas.
It comes after the British government suspended around 30 of its 350 arms export licences to Israel amid fears they could be used to breach international humanitarian law relating to the treatment of Palestinian detainees and the supply of aid to Gaza.
Watch live: View of Beirut following walkie-talkie explosions as Israel blamed for pager attack
08:59
Tara Cobham
Full story: At least 20 dead as walkie-talkies explode in Lebanon as Israel declares ‘new phase of war’ against Hezbollah
08:30
Tara Cobham
Handheld radios used by Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon on Wednesday in a second wave of deadly blasts as Israel’s defence minister declared his country was entering a “new phase of war” on its northern border.
At least 20 people were killed and 450 injured by the detonations, Lebanon’s health ministry said.
It came 24 hours after thousands of exploding pagers killed 12 and injured almost 3,000 others in an unprecedented attack that Hezbollah has blamed on Israel.
Chief international correspondent Bel Trew and Chris Stevenson report:
Israeli security services arrest Israeli man over alleged Iranian-backed assassination plot
08:10
Tara Cobham
Israeli security services said they had arrested an Israeli citizen on suspicion of involvement in an Iranian-backed assassination plot targeting prominent people including the prime minister.
It said the person was a businessman with connections in Turkey who had attended at least two meetings in Iran to discuss the possibility of assassinating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant or the head of the Shin Bet intelligence agency.
Israeli forces strike Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon amid escalating tensions
08:04
Namita Singh
The Israeli military launched air and artillery strikes on multiple targets in southern Lebanon overnight, targeting Iranian-backed Hezbollah strongholds.
The strikes, confirmed by the Israeli military on Thursday, hit key locations including Chihine, Tayibe, Blida, Meiss El Jabal, Aitaroun, and Kfarkela.
A Hezbollah weapons storage facility in Khiam was also targeted.
Reports suggest Israeli civilians were injured by anti-tank missile fire from Lebanon, although officials have yet to confirm.
This latest escalation follows months of cross-border exchanges between Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants. On Wednesday, Hezbollah fired around 20 projectiles into Israel, with most intercepted by air defence systems.
The Golan Heights, a strategic area with key Israeli surveillance and air defence installations, was also targeted with around 10 missiles.Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border continue to spiral, sparking concerns of a broader conflict.
British-educated businesswoman denies making explosive Hezbollah pagers
07:52
Namita Singh
A British-educated businesswoman has denied suggestions that her company manufactured the pagers used in an audacious attack against Hezbollah.
The handheld devices killed at least 12 people and injured 3,000 after they simultaneously detonated across Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday afternoon in a suspected Israeli operation.
The Taiwanese company whose branding was on the technology claimed Budapest-based firm BAC Consultancy made the devices under a three-year brand licensing agreement.
Report:
Iran and Europe seek diplomatic breakthrough on nukes amid tensions
07:51
Namita Singh
Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian is set to meet European officials at the UN General Assembly in New York next week, marking a crucial test of whether the two sides can revive diplomatic efforts over Iran’s nuclear programme.
The talks will come amid high tensions in the Middle East, only made worse by the explosions of pagers and hand-held radios used by the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Mr Pezeshkian’s visit, his first to the West since his election in July, takes place just six weeks before the US presidential election, which could see former president Donald Trump, a staunch opponent of compromise with Iran, return to office. According to three Iranian officials, Mr Pezeshkian will convey that “Tehran is open to diplomacy” but will not succumb to pressure.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rather than Mr Pezeshkian, holds the authority on Tehran’s nuclear and foreign policy. An Iranian official told Reuters, “Iran’s rulers believe that the tense standoff with the West over Iran’s nuclear programme should end... but through negotiations from a position of power, not pressure”.
UN Security Council to meet over pager blasts
07:05
Namita Singh
World leaders are gearing up for a pivotal meeting at the United Nations next week, with over 130 leaders expected to attend.
The gathering comes at a critical time, as conflicts in the Middle East and Europe threaten to spread, and frustration mounts over the slow pace of efforts to resolve them. The wars in Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan are expected to take centre stage, dominating the annual high-level UN General Assembly.
Diplomats and analysts are tempered in their expectations, warning that breakthroughs are unlikely.
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has expressed concern that the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine are “stuck with no peaceful solutions in sight”.
The situation in the Middle East is further complicated by escalating tensions in Lebanon, where Hezbollah has accused Israel of carrying out a wave of deadly attacks.
“There is a serious risk of a dramatic escalation in Lebanon, and everything must be done to avoid that escalation,” Mr Guterres told reporters on Wednesday.
Taiwanese company Gold Apollo denies making pagers used in Lebanon attack
07:00
Holly Evans
Taiwanese electronics maker Gold Apollo has denied producing the pagers used in Tuesday’s deadly attack in Lebanon, which killed at least nine people and injured nearly 3,000.
Gold Apollo founder and president Hsu Ching-Kuang said the devices were manufactured by BAC Consulting, a company based in Budapest, Hungary, licensed to use the Taiwanese brand.
“The product was not ours. It was only that it had our brand on it,” Mr Hsu said.
Read the full article here:
Walkie-talkie blasts across Lebanon target Hezbollah strongholds
06:59
Namita Singh
A series of explosions rocked southern Lebanon and Beirut on Wednesday, sparking chaos and panic in areas known to be Hezbollah strongholds.
The blasts have been attributed to exploding walkie-talkies, and came just a day after pager devices used by Hezbollah detonated across both Lebanon and Syria.
The walkie-talkie blasts, which occurred in the afternoon were reported across various suburbs of Beirut as well as in the southern city of Tyre.
Eyewitnesses described scenes of destruction, with vehicles on fire and smoke billowing from residential areas. Al Jazeera correspondent Ali Hashem witnessed one car explode during a funeral in southern Lebanon, suggesting that the blast came from within the vehicle, rather than it being struck by a drone.
Affected Areas:
- Southern suburbs of Beirut, areas where Hezbollah is known to have a strong presence
- Southern city of Tyre
- Residential areas and during a funeral procession in southern Lebanon
Voices: What has boobytrapping Hezbollah’s pagers actually achieved?
06:18
Namita Singh
The audacious attack was a PR coup for Israel and humiliation for the terrorists – but it does nothing to create a lasting framework of peaceful co-existence, says Sean O’Grady
Hezbollah fires rockets at Israeli artillery positions amid escalating tensions
06:10
Namita Singh
Hezbollah launched rocket attacks on Israeli artillery positions Wednesday, marking its first strike against Israel since the recent blasts that killed dozens in Lebanon.
The Israeli military reported no damage or casualties from the rocket attacks.
Hezbollah’s move comes amid heightened tensions between the two adversaries, who have been engaged in cross-border fighting since the Gaza conflict began on 7 October 2023.
Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director of research at the Carnegie Middle East Center, noted that while Hezbollah seeks to avoid all-out war, pressure may mount for a more robust response given the scale of recent events.
This latest escalation has fueled concerns of a broader Middle East conflict, potentially drawing in the United States and Iran.
According to official counts, the previous highest daily Lebanese death toll was 11, resulting from Israeli shelling last month.
Where did the explosions take place?
06:00
Holly Evans
At least twelve people have been killed and 3,000 were injured after handheld pager devices used by Hezbollah simultaneously exploded across Lebanon and Syria.
The attack - described by Hezbollah as its “largest security breach” in nearly a year of near-daily cross-border fire with Israel - has heightened tensions in the Middle East as Hezbollah vowed revenge.
On Wednesday, more explosions have been heard in Beirut and other cities with reports walkie-talkie devices had been detonated.
Read the full article here:
Recap: Hezbollah radios detonate across Lebanon, killing 20
05:50
Namita Singh
A new wave of explosions rocked Lebanon’s south on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people.
This time, hand-held walkie talkies used by Hezbollah detonated, injuring more than 450 in Beirut’s suburbs and the Bekaa Valley.
The explosions, coming after Tuesday’s attack targeting pagers, have stoked renewed tensions amid cross-border fighting with Israel.
The death toll from Tuesday’s pager blasts has now risen to 12, including two children, with nearly 3,000 injured.
Israeli officials have not commented on the blasts, but security sources said Israel’s spy agency Mossad was responsible. One Hezbollah official said the episode was the biggest security breach in the group’s history.
The operations, which appeared to throw Hezbollah into disarray, played out alongside Israel’s 11-month-old war in Gaza and heightened fears of an escalation on its Lebanese border and the risk of a full-blown regional war.
UK urges Israel to adhere to international humanitarian law
05:47
Namita Singh
The UK has reaffirmed its stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict, emphasising the need for Israel to comply with international humanitarian law.
A Foreign Office spokesperson stressed that Israel’s right to self-defence must be balanced with the protection of civilians and adherence to humanitarian principles.
The spokesperson expressed regret that concerns raised by the UK and other allies have not been adequately addressed.
“Our priority remains achieving a ceasefire in Gaza, the hostages released, civilians protected and aid flood in.
“There is no place in Britain for antisemitism, and we will not relent in our work to root out hatred in all forms.
“This government is committed to multi-year funding for the Community Security Trust, and working with the Jewish community and police to ensure that everyone feels safe on our streets.”
Israel waging ‘just war with just means’, claims Netanyahu
05:11
Namita Singh
Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel is waging “just war with just means” and claimed it is taking “unprecedented measures to keep civilians out of harm’s way and comporting fully with international law”.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said: “After the October 7 Hamas massacre, the previous British government was clear in its support.”
Unfortunately, the current government is sending mixed messages.
They say that Israel has the right to defend itself, but they undermine our ability to exercise that right both by reversing Britain’s position on the absurd allegations made by the ICC prosecutor against Israel and by blocking weapons sales to Israel as we fight against the genocidal terrorist organisation that carried out the October 7 massacre.
He also told the newspaper: “Most recently, the new UK government suspended 30 arms licences to Israel, days after Hamas executed six Israeli hostages, sending a horrible message to Hamas.
“These misguided decisions will not change Israel’s determination to defeat Hamas, a genocidal terrorist organisation that savagely murdered 1,200 people on October 7, including 14 British citizens, and took 255 people, including five British hostages.
“Just as Britain’s heroic stand against the Nazis is seen today as having been vital in defeating barbarism, so too will history judge Israel’s stand against Hamas and Iran’s axis of terror. Israel will win this war and secure our common future.”
Mr Netanyahu also said the UK is “witnessing shameless antisemitism on its campuses, at its city centres and in many parts of the country”, adding: “It is worrisome. I trust and expect that the UK leadership will take the necessary steps to root out this scourge.”
Israel has long history of pulling off complex attacks like exploding pagers in Lebanon
05:00
Holly Evans
Hezbollah and the Lebanese government were quick to blame Israel for the nearly simultaneous detonation of hundreds of pagers used by the militant group’s members in an attack Tuesday that killed at least nine people and wounded nearly 3,000 others, according to officials.
Many of those hit were members of militant group Hezbollah, but it wasn’t immediately clear if others also carried the pagers. Among those killed were the son of a prominent Hezbollah politician and an 8-year-old girl, according to Lebanon’s health minister.
The attack came amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, which have exchanged fire across the Israel-Lebanon border since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that sparked the war in Gaza. Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon was among those injured by the pager explosions.
Read the full article here:
Netanyahu accuses UK of sending ‘mixed messages’ over support for Israel
04:48
Namita Singh
Benjamin Netanyahu has accused the UK government of sending “mixed messages” over its support for Israel and “undermining” the country’s right to self-defence.
Israel’s prime minister criticised the new Labour administration for suspending around 30 arms exports to Israel amid concerns they could be used in violations of international humanitarian law in the Gaza conflict.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has also dropped the previous Conservative government’s plan to challenge the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) application for an arrest warrant against Mr Netanyahu.
Both decisions have caused diplomatic tensions with Israel, which launched a counter-attack in Gaza after Hamas-led militants broke into Israel and killed around 1,200 people and abducted around 250 others.
More than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in the counter-attack, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.
Pentagon chief and Israeli counterpart discuss threats to Israel
04:28
Namita Singh
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin spoke on Wednesday with Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant to review regional security developments and reiterate US support for Israel in the face of threats from Iran, Hezbollah and other Iranian allies, the Pentagon said.
Taiwan closely monitoring Hezbollah pager explosions
04:23
Namita Singh
Taiwan’s national security agencies are closely monitoring the recent detonation of thousands of pagers targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon, defence minister Wellington Koo said.
The incident has drawn Taiwan into the spotlight due to links to a Taiwanese firm, Gold Apollo, which allegedly produced the pagers. However, Gold Apollo denied involvement, stating that the devices were manufactured by a Budapest-based company licensed to use its brand.
“Relevant national security bodies are closely watching developments,” Mr Koo said in Taipei, adding they are “paying great attention” to this.
The Taiwanese government has not provided further details on its involvement or response to the situation.
What has boobytrapping Hezbollah’s pagers actually achieved?
04:00
Holly Evans
As a global propaganda coup for the Israeli security services, the pager attacks on Hezbollah members in Lebanon could scarcely be surpassed.
What kind of a mind, one wonders, dreams up such a macabre lark as this, an “exploding cigar” practical joke on a grand scale?
The sheer audacity of it was very much in the Israeli tradition, and it made some points rather forcefully. It proved that the Israelis could intercept Hezbollah supply lines, and with such ease that they could find the time to fit a few grams of military-grade explosives to each device, disguised as an electronic component.
Read the full article here:
British-educated businesswoman denies making Hezbollah explosive pagers which killed at least 12 people
03:00
Holly Evans
A British-educated businesswoman has denied allegations of manufacturing the pagers used in an audacious attack against Hezbollah.
The handheld devices killed at least 12 people and injured 3,000 after they simultaneously detonated across Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday afternoon in a suspected Israeli operation.
The Taiwanese company whose branding was on the technology claimed Budapest-based firm BAC Consultancy made the devices under a three-year brand licensing agreement.
Read the full article here:
Watch: Moment of explosion in Beirut one day after pagers detonate
02:00
Holly Evans
Live view of Israel’s border with Lebanon
01:00
Holly Evans
Read the full story: At least 20 dead as walkie-talkies explode in Lebanon
Thursday 19 September 2024 00:00
Holly Evans
Handheld radios used by Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon on Wednesday in a second wave of deadly blasts as Israel’s defence minister declared his country was entering a “new phase of war” on its northern border.
At least 20 people were killed and 450 injured by the detonations, Lebanon’s health ministry said.
While Israel has not commented, the finger has been pointed at its Mossad spy agency. A senior Lebanese security source and a second source told reporters that Mossad – which has a long history of complex attacks on foreign soil – planted explosives inside the pagers. The claim was mirrored by American officials cited in US media.
Read the full article from chief international correspondent Bel Trew here:
Iran’s UN envoy says they will ‘duly follow up’ on attack on their ambassador
Wednesday 18 September 2024 23:20
Holly Evans
The Iranian ambassador to the UN, in a letter reported by the Iranian state news agency, reiterates that his country blames Israel and accuses it of committing acts of a “terrorist nature”.
Amir Saeid Iravani said: “The Islamic Republic of Iran will duly follow up on the attack against its ambassador in Lebanon, which resulted in his injury, and reserves its rights under international law to take required measures deemed necessary to respond to such a heinous crime and violation.”
He added: “Western countries, especially the United States as a strategic ally, by their unwavering so-called ironclad support for this regime, bear international responsibility” for Israel’s acts.
Benjamin Netanyahu accuses UK of being ‘misguided’ and sending ‘mixed messages’
Wednesday 18 September 2024 23:06
Holly Evans
Israel’s prime minister has accused the British government of sending “mixed messages” and being “misguided” after recently suspending 30 arms licences.
Benjamin Netanyahu said Sir Keir Starmer was “sending a horrible message” to Hamas and said the UK had undermined their claim that his country had a right to defend itself by withdrawing its challenge to the arrest warrants made by the International Criminal Court.
Speaking to the Mail, Mr Netanyahu said: “After the October 7 Hamas massacre, the previous British government was clear in its support. Unfortunately, the current government is sending mixed messages.”
He added: “Just as Britain’s heroic stand against the Nazis is seen today as having been vital in defeating barbarism, so too will history judge Israel’s stand against Hamas and Iran’s axis of terror. Israel will win this war and secure our common future.”
A war with Hezbollah may be looming. Is Israel prepared?
Wednesday 18 September 2024 22:55
Holly Evans
With Israel‘s defense minister announcing a “new phase” of the war and an apparent Israeli attack setting off explosions in electronic devices in Lebanon, the specter of all-out combat between Israel and Hezbollah seems closer than ever before.
Hopes for a diplomatic solution to the conflict appear to be fading quickly as Israel signals a desire to change the status quo in the country’s north, where it has exchanged cross-border fire with Hezbollah since the Lebanese militant group began attacking on Oct. 8, a day after the war’s opening salvo by Hamas.
In recent days, Israel has moved a powerful fighting force up to the northern border, officials have escalated their rhetoric, and the country’s security Cabinet has designated the return of tens of thousands of displaced residents to their homes in northern Israel an official war goal.
Here’s a look at how Israel is preparing for a war with Lebanon:
Read the full article here:
Flowers left at the Lebanese embassy in Tehran
Wednesday 18 September 2024 22:34
Holly Evans
Tributes have been left at the gate of Lebanon’s embassy in Iran’s capital Tehran, with a growing pile of flowers visible and children seen lighting candles.
Who are Hezbollah?
Wednesday 18 September 2024 22:20
Holly Evans
Founded in 1982 during Lebanon’s civil war, Hezbollah’s initial objective was ending Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon. It achieved that in 2000.
Shiite Muslim Hezbollah is part of a collection of Iranian-backed factions and governments known as the Axis of Resistance. It was the first group that Iran backed and used as a way to export its brand of political Islamism.
In its early days the group attacked US targets, causing Washington to designate it as a terrorist organisation.
Hezbollah fighters ambushed an Israeli patrol in 2006 and took two Israeli soldiers hostage. Hezbollah and Israel fought a monthlong war that ended in a draw but Israeli bombardment wreaked widespread destruction in southern Lebanon.
Israel’s objective was eliminating Hezbollah but the Lebanese group came out stronger and became a key military and political power on Israel