Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi met Monday with U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea.
No statement was made after the meeting but the National News Agency said the two discussed the need for a swift election of a Lebanese president and the need to prevent Lebanon from joining the Gaza war.
Al-Rahi also reiterated his support for the extension of the term of Army chief Gen. Joseph Aoun, whose term ends in January.
İsrail-Lübnan sınırında yaşanan karşılıklı saldırılarda Lübnan'da iki kişi hayatını kaybetti, İsrail'de iki kişi yaralandı. İsrail, Al Mayadeen kanalının ülke içindeki yayınını yasakladı.
DUVAR - İsrail, Hizbullah ile karşılıklı saldırıların 8 Ekim'den bu yana devam ettiği Lübnan sınırında atılan tanksavar füzesi nedeniyle iki kişinin yaralandığını duyurdu. Bu açıklamanın ardından Lübnan'dan yapılan açıklamada, İsrail'in hava saldırısında iki sivilin yaşamını yitirdiği ve bazı sivillerin yaralandığı bilgisi paylaşıldı.
At least two people have been killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon, according to first responders and local media, amid growing concerns that the Israel-Hamas war could spread beyond Gaza.
Two people were killed in an Israeli strike on the town of Ainata on Monday, according to a first-responder organisation affiliated with the Hezbollah-allied Amal Movement and Lebanese state media.
It was not immediately clear if those killed were civilians.
The Israeli military said earlier that “terrorists fired towards several locations in northern Israel”.
The army said its artillery struck the source of the fire and hit posts which “terrorists used to carry out launches toward Israel”.
In a separate attack, Israeli forces shelled media teams and journalists in the Lebanese border village of Yaroun, official Lebanese news agency NNA reported.
JERUSALEM (AP) — Attacks by Lebanon’s Hezbollah group Sunday wounded seven Israeli troops and 10 other people, Israel’s military and rescue services said.
The clashes came as skirmishes between the Iran-backed group and Israeli military continue to intensify along the Lebanon-Israel border, threatening to escalate into another front in the Mideast’s latest war.
The assault was the most serious incident involving civilians along the Lebanon-Israel border since an Israeli airstrike in south Lebanon on Nov. 5 killed a woman and three children.
The Israeli army’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said the Hezbollah attack on Israeli civilians was “very serious.”
The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah announced on Sunday that one of its members was killed in clashes with the Israeli army along Lebanon's southern border.
The latest casualty brings the group's total reported fatalities to 73 since Oct. 8.
In a statement, Hezbollah mourned “the fighter Jawad Al-Bazal from the town of Bekaa, who ascended on the path to Jerusalem.” The group, however, did not provide further details regarding the circumstances of Al-Bazal's death.
On Saturday, Hezbollah Leader Hassan Nasrallah, in a televised speech, declared that their military operations against Israel are “ongoing” despite all precautionary measures taken by Tel Aviv.
On the same day, Israel Defense Minister Yaakov Galant issued a warning to the residents of Beirut, stating that they would “face the fate of Gaza residents” if a war with Hezbollah broke out, according to the Israeli Broadcasting Authority.
AA, İsrail Savunma Bakanı Yoav Gallant'ın "abluka altındaki Gazze Şeridi'nde yaptıklarını Beyrut'ta da nasıl yapacaklarını bildikleri" şeklindeki açıklamalarına dair düşüncelerini almak için Beyrut sakinlerine mikrofon uzattı.
İsrail'in Lübnan halkına yönelik tehditlerinin "psikolojik bir savaştan" ibaret olduğunu belirten Adil Mehdi, "İsrail vahşi bir şekilde Gazze'ye yönelik hava saldırılarını başlatarak özellikle Lübnan olmak üzere tüm Arap dünyasına da mesajlar verdi. Bakın Gazze'de ne yapıyoruz şeklinde. Lübnan'ın gücü ve direnişi var. Aynı şekilde (İsrail'e) karşılık verebilir." dedi.
Tel Aviv'in tehditlerinin yeni olmadığını dile getiren Ebu Muhammed de "Biz İsrail'in 75 yıldır tehditlerine, öldürme ve suçlarına alıştık. Biz kendi toprağımızı savunuyoruz. Ne yapmak istiyorlarsa yapsınlar. Biz hazırız inşallah." diye konuştu.
Ebu Muhammed, İsrail'in amacının sadece halk arasında korku yaymak olduğunu ancak bu tür tehditlerden korkmadıklarını kaydetti.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi told caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati during a bilateral meeting in Riyadh that Hezbollah is “independent in decisions and actions and does not receive orders from Iran.”
“Hezbollah’s measures in south Lebanon are based on wisdom, rationality and deterrence in order to prevent aggression,” Raisi added.
The meeting was held on the sidelines of an emergency Arab-Islamic summit that tackled the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
https://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/301495
The United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon said gunfire from an unidentified source hit a member of its contingent early Sunday, adding that the peacekeeper was in a stable condition.
The statement from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) did not indicate whether the incident was linked to ongoing exchanges of fire on the Lebanese border, mainly between Hezbollah and Israel, since a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 triggered war.
"Shortly after midnight last night, peacekeepers in a UNIFIL position near Al-Qawzah reported hearing gunfire nearby," force spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said in a statement.
"One peacekeeper was hit by a bullet and underwent surgery. He is recovering and currently stable," the statement said, adding that the origin of the fire was unknown and the force had launched an investigation.
Late last month, shelling lightly wounded a U.N. peacekeeper near the border village of Houla, just hours after UNIFIL said a shell hit its headquarters in Naqoura near the Israel-Lebanon border.
"Attacks against civilians or U.N. personnel are violations of international law that may amount to war crimes," the UNIFIL statement said.
"We continue to urge all parties involved to cease their fire," it added.
On Sunday morning, Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) said Israeli aircraft and drones had carried out raids on border areas and also reported artillery shelling after midnight targeting sites including near Al-Qawzah, where the peacekeeper was wounded.
It said an Israeli drone strike targeted near a restaurant in the Tal Nahas area, without reporting casualties.
Since Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip, Lebanon's southern border has seen intensifying tit-for-tat exchanges, mainly between Israel and Hezbollah, an ally of the Palestinian group, stoking fears of a broader conflagration.
Israeli fire, some on targets in Syria, has killed at least 70 Hezbollah fighters since hostilities broke out, according to an AFP tally based on statements from the group.
An Israeli drone strike has killed an Amal Movement fighter and wounded two others, according to a statement released by Amal, which is allied with Hezbollah.
Ali Daoud became the first Amal fighter to be killed in action since the fighting began on October 8, while Hezbollah has lost nearly 70 fighters during the past five weeks.
The aggression on Gaza which is carried out by the Israeli occupation is a dangerous, exceptional development; these crimes reflect the brutality of the Israeli occupation, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Saturday during a ceremony commemorating Martyr's Day.
Sayyed Nasrallah underlined that the Israeli occupation's crimes were a mere reflection of its brutal nature aimed at subjugating the peoples of the region and breaking their will to demand their rights. "The goal of the Israeli occupation's crimes is to push the people to give up and forget about their land, prisoners, sanctities, and the whole of Palestine," the Hezbollah chief said.
He also affirmed that the Israeli occupation, through its aggression and crimes in Gaza, including the brutal and deliberate killing of civilians, is "sending a message to Lebanon."
https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/hezbollah-drones-reaching-haifa-daily--sayyed-nasrallah
For the first four weeks of Israeli assault on Gaza, Syed Hassan Nasrallah was conspicuously silent. When he finally spoke, a week ago, the world listened anxiously: Would the leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah, the strongest militia in the region, declare a full-scale war on Israel?
It was much ado about nothing. In his well-known fiery style, Nasrallah reiterated Hezbollah’s views on regional issues and warned Israel.
There was no big announcement, and the speech was not followed by fighters storming into Israel or even a token salvo of missiles. The standoff continued as usual: tension, skirmishes, and occasional flare-ups, all measurable and containable.
More than thirty Lebanese deputies issued an appeal on Friday, ahead of the Arab and Muslim summits scheduled in Riyadh, urging Arab leaders to "help Lebanon face attempts to drag it into the war" between Hamas and Israel.
The statement emphasizes that Lebanon sits "at the heart of the crisis in the region" and that the Lebanese people "fear the escalation of the war could affect their country." They express concern of the Lebanese state's decision-making process "being sullied by an illegitimate armed force serving a regional axis, jeopardizing strategic interests, security, and stability." The sentiment is that the Lebanese reject being forcibly drawn into a total war.
The parliamentarians believe that the summit, with its leverage in the region, is capable of extracting Lebanon from this situation and liberating it from unwanted influence.
The lawmakers urge Arab leaders to engage in all international arenas, especially at the United Nations and the Security Council, for the full implementation of Resolution 1701. This resolution, adopted on Aug. 11, 2006, in response to the war between Israel and Hezbollah, aims to end hostilities, establish a ceasefire, and create conditions for lasting peace in the region.
They categorically condemn the ongoing Israeli war against Gaza, where the Palestinian people are victims of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The MPs call for immediate intervention not only to organize a humanitarian truce or cease-fire but to initiate a political process based on the Arab Peace Initiative established at the Beirut Summit in 2002, adopting the two-state solution.
The deputies conclude by stating that protecting Lebanon requires stabilizing the institutions established by the Taef Agreement, and electing a President of the Republic. Lebanon has been without a president since the end of Michel Aoun's mandate over a year ago.
Among the signatory deputies are George Adwan, Sami Gemayel, Michel Moawad, Marc Daou, Michel Doueihy, Fouad Makhzoumi, Ghassan Hasbani, George Okaïs, Nadim Gemayel, Ashraf Rifi, Élias Hankash, Sethrida Geagea, and Melhem Riashi.
Israeli army targeted on Friday the Mays Al Jabal Hospital in southern Lebanon, state media reported, as tensions between the neighboring countries remain high since the Oct. 7 cross border offensive by Palestinian group Hamas.
An unexploded 155-caliber artillery shell landed in the courtyard of the hospital, the official National News Agency reported.
Israel also shelled the outskirts of the southern villages of Al-Odaisseh and KfarKila, it added.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry in a statement condemned the attack on the medical facility, adding that it injured a health worker and inflicted damage to the emergency department — "in flagrant defiance of all the international laws and treaties.”
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israel-targets-hospital-in-southern-lebanon/3050019
It was an ordinary morning for the Nabaa family. Raouia and Hassan sat beneath the awning of their small hillside house in above Kfar Shouba along Lebanon’s southeastern border, enjoying coffee with friends and family. Their six children were still sound asleep.
"Then, everything descended into chaos," Hassan recalled.
On Oct. 8, Hezbollah launched an attack on three Israeli positions in the occupied Shebaa Farms, just a day after Hamas’ violent surprise attack in Israel.
Missiles soared, sending shrapnel flying in all directions. One window after another shattered. Two of the children were wounded.
It’s been a month since that day and the family still hasn't returned home. Raouia sought refuge with the children in the Bekaa, while Hassan, who herds goats and depends on the animals for the family’s livelihood, remained in Hebbariyeh, a village near Kfar Shouba.
"The majority of the country carries on as if nothing has happened,” Raouia said.
https://today.lorientlejour.com/article/1356758/in-south-lebanon-a-month-of-unnamed-war.html
Four paramedics were wounded when an Israeli drone bombed an ambulance for the Amal Movement-affiliated Islamic Risala Scout Association on the outskirts of the south Lebanon town of Tayr Harfa.
The National News Agency said the injuries ranged from light to moderate.
TV networks said the paramedics were trying to evacuate the bodies of two Hezbollah fighters killed on a motorbike by Israeli fire as well as people who were wounded in an Israeli airstrike on a house.
Israeli reports meanwhile said that an Iron Dome missile was fired at a suspicious target over the border with Lebanon. Lebanese reports said no rockets were fired from Lebanon.
Israeli artillery had in the morning shelled the outskirts of the southern towns of Marwahin, Dhayra, Talbsin, Alma al-Shaab, Naqoua and al-Labbouneh.
Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes along the border with Lebanon Saturday after Hezbollah attacked several Israeli army posts.
The escalation came a day after Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said his powerful group is already engaged in unprecedented fighting along the Lebanon-Israel border. He threatened a further escalation as Israel's war in Gaza with Hamas, Hezbollah's ally, nears the one-month mark.
Hezbollah is prepared for all options, Nasrallah declared, "and we can resort to them at any time."
Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters attacked at least six Israeli posts along the border, saying "suitable rockets and weapons" were used. It added that "direct hits were scored and technical equipment was destroyed."
Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV reported that fighters shot down a spy balloon that Israel's military posted over the northern settlement of Misgav Am.
On the outskirts of the village of Rmeish, in a rugged area along the border, an Israeli airstrike caused thick gray smoke. Artillery shelling could be heard from a distance.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported airs.
Bombing in South Lebanon intensified on Saturday, with the Israeli army announcing that it shelled “two terrorist cells” and a “control point” belonging to Hezbollah in response to attempts to launch strikes from Lebanon.
Israel conducted ten raids within one hour – the highest number of airstrikes since Oct. 8, the date of Hezbollah’s involvement in the Gaza war on the southern Lebanon front.
The sound of rockets was heard 40 kilometers from the border, while the video clips circulated on Lebanese social media platforms showed thick smoke following massive air strikes carried out by Israeli aircraft in various areas of the south.
Lebanese media reported that an Israeli spy balloon was targeted and shot down on the border. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar channel said that an “enemy spy balloon was targeted and shot down over the Miskav Am settlement.”
The channel added that Israeli air strikes targeted forest areas in Naqoura, Aita al-Shaab, Rmeish, Kfarhamam, and Kfarshouba. Israeli artillery also bombed the outskirts of the towns of Blida, Muhaibib, Mays al-Jabal, Hula, Markaba, and Wadi Hunine.
In a statement, the Israeli army said that in response to attempts by two terrorist cells to fire rockets from Lebanon towards Israeli territory, the Israeli army bombed the two cells and a Hezbollah observation point.
The Israeli army also indicated that it responded to the firing of mortar shells launched from Lebanon towards Israeli towns in “northern Israel,” which it said caused no casualties.
Hezbollah, in turn, announced the bombing of five sites, including Jal al-Alam, al-Jardah, Hadab al-Bustan, al-Malikiyah, and al-Mutulla, saying that its fighters “achieved direct hits there, in addition to destroying technical equipment.”
Hezbollah on Saturday attacked the al-Jirdah, Hadb al-Bustan, Jal al-Alam and Malkia Israeli military posts on Lebanon’s border.
Israel retaliated with an airstrike on the al-Labbouneh area in Naqoura and artillery shelling on the Lebanese border areas of Naqoura, Yarin, Tayr Harfa, Dhayra, Shihin and Aitaroun.
The Israeli army said it targeted “two cells that tried to fire shells from Lebanon at Israeli territory.” It also said that it destroyed a Hezbollah surveillance post.
Progressive Socialist Party former leader Walid Jumblat has described Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s speech on the military developments in Gaza and south Lebanon as “very realistic.”
“He was very realistic in describing the plight of the Palestinian people and the Israeli occupation of the past 75 years, in addition to the situation in Gaza and the bombardment of civilians,” Jumblat said in an interview with al-Jadeed television.
“He held the United States responsible, the same as I hold it and the West responsible,” Jumblat added.
Asked about the White House’s remarks that it does not want to see the war spreading to Lebanon, the ex-PSP chief said: “They are thanked for their generosity, but let them implement a ceasefire in Gaza, end the siege and open the humiliation border crossing that is called Rafah.”
“All possibilities are on the table and we don’t know what’s in Israel’s hostile intentions,” he added.
Kataeb Party chief Sami Gemayel meanwhile said that Nasrallah’s speech did not carry “anything new.”
“The entire speech was fully expected,” Gemayel told Al-Arabiya television.