Fears mount in Lebanon of a wider war as Hezbollah vows retaliation 

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah gives a televised address, during the funeral of Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah commander who was killed in an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs on Tuesday August 1, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 01 August 2024
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Fears mount in Lebanon of a wider war as Hezbollah vows retaliation 

  • Political assassination approach is extremely dangerous, says envoy
  • In talks with British ministerial delegation, Mikati urges international community to press Israel to stop aggression

BEIRUT: Security measures in Lebanon increased on Thursday following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday morning.

This, in turn, came after the assassination of senior Hezbollah military commander Fouad Shukr on Tuesday night in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Hezbollah asked those in southern towns not to film security events and to disconnect fixed surveillance cameras from the internet, which it claimed was “infiltrated by Israel.”

Caution prevailed on the southern front, interrupted by Israeli raids and shelling on border towns.

In an effort to contain any deterioration in security, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Defense Secretary John Healey arrived in Beirut for talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Najib Mikati, and Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib.

Lammy called on “all parties to respect and implement Resolution 1701 and all its provisions and stipulations.”

Healy commended “the partnership between the Lebanese and British armies” and called for “addressing all conflicts through dialogue and diplomatic means, as the violence will have dire consequences for everyone.”

Berri informed the British delegation “that Lebanon does not want war but is ready to defend itself, and Israeli arrogance is dragging the region toward unpredictable dangers.”

Mikati said Lebanon appreciated the message of support from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, conveyed by the two secretaries of state.

He stressed that “Israel has violated Lebanese sovereignty and attacked our land, in violation of international laws, and it assaults civilians blatantly every day” and added: “The solution can only be political by implementing international resolutions, including UN Resolution 1701.”

He called on Britain and the international community to “put pressure on Israel to stop its aggression.”

Mikati’s appeal came as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs filed a complaint with the UN Security Council and the UN secretary-general through its permanent mission in New York.

The ministry called on Security Council members “to condemn the Israeli cyberattacks on Lebanon, which pose a serious threat to civil aviation services and endanger the security and safety of communication networks, devices, applications, and electronic data in vital Lebanese facilities.” 

The ministry’s actions are based on a report from the Lebanese Ministry of Telecommunications, which revealed: “The source of GPS jamming is in northern Israel and caused a decline in the accuracy of positioning in Lebanon, affecting transport and communication services.

“Repeated warnings from the Network Time Protocol server were reported, showing the frequent loss of GPS signals and a decline in the quality of service and user experience for mobile network operators.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also requested its permanent mission in Geneva to file a complaint with the International Telecommunication Union, calling for necessary technical measures to stop such attacks and assist Lebanon in ensuring proper functioning of its communication networks.

Also on Thursday, Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Alaa Moussa discussed the latest developments with Berri.

The envoy affirmed Egypt’s rejection of any aggression against Lebanon and highlighted Egypt’s support.

Moussa stressed the importance of calm as expansion of the conflict would result in dire consequences for both Lebanon and the entire region.

He said: “We have already warned that the Israeli aggression against Gaza will expand the cycle of violence circle and confrontations on many and multiple fronts, which actually happened in the past days.”

The ambassador conveyed a message from Egypt that warned “resorting to political assassinations and the consequences resulting of this approach that will lead us into a vicious circle.”

Moussa added the international community must assume their responsibilities through the UN Security Council by issuing a binding resolution to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, achieving de-escalation on all fronts and especially in south Lebanon.

The body of Hezbollah’s Fouad Shukr was found under the debris of a residential building in Haret Hreik, along with a second body that was identified as Iranian adviser Milad Bedi. The bodies of Hanaa Bashire and her daughter, Dr. Salwa Zuhair Al-Bitar, who lived in the targeted building, were also recovered. This brings the total number of Israeli airstrike victims to eight, two of whom were children.

Iranian news agencies reported that Bedi was a “military adviser of Al-Quds Force, the overseas arm of the Revolutionary Guards.

Shortly before Shukr’s funeral, Hezbollah hung giant portraits of him bearing the words “Fuad Al-Muqawama” — Arabic for “the heart of resilience” — on roads to the south.

The Lebanese people held their breath on Thursday amid fears of retaliation from Hezbollah and Iran.

Private institutions in Beirut shortened working hours for employees to 4 p.m., an hour before Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah’s speech at Shukr’s funeral procession.

Nasrallah warned the group was bound to respond to the killing and said the deaths of both Shukr and the Hamas leader “crossed red lines.”


Over 100 patients to be evacuated from Gaza, WHO says

Updated 7 sec ago
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Over 100 patients to be evacuated from Gaza, WHO says

GENEVA: More than 100 patients including children suffering from trauma injuries and chronic diseases will be evacuated from Gaza on Wednesday in a rare transfer out of the war-ravaged enclave, a World Health Organization official said.
“These are ad hoc measures. What we have requested repeatedly is a sustained medevac (medical evacuation) outside of Gaza,” said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, adding that 12,000 people were awaiting transfer.
The patients will travel in a large convoy on Wednesday via the Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel before flying to the United Arab Emirates, he added, and then a portion will travel to Romania.

Iran says two French detainees held in good conditions

Updated 05 November 2024
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Iran says two French detainees held in good conditions

  • In recent years, Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security

DUBAI: Two French citizens detained in Iran since May 2022 are in good health and being held in good detention conditions, Iran’s judiciary spokesperson Asghar Jahangir said on Tuesday, according to state media.
Last month, France’s foreign ministry said the conditions that three of its nationals were being held in by Iran were unacceptable.
“According to the relevant authorities, these two people have good conditions in the detention center and are in good health, so any claim regarding their conditions being abnormal is rejected,” Jahangir said.
The spokesperson was referring to Cecile Koehler and Jacques Paris, who he said were arrested on charges of espionage and will have their next court hearing on Nov. 24.
Jahangir did not mention the third French national detained in Iran. French media have disclosed only his first name, Olivier.
In recent years, Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security.
Rights groups have accused Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests.


Israeli airstrikes kill at least 30 Palestinians in Gaza, medics say

Updated 05 November 2024
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Israeli airstrikes kill at least 30 Palestinians in Gaza, medics say

  • Airstrikes in Gaza kill at least 30, Palestinian medics and media say
  • Israeli military says it ‘eliminated terrorists’ in latest operations

CAIRO: Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 30 Palestinians since Monday night, Palestinian media and medics said on Tuesday, as the Israeli army tightened its siege on northern areas of the enclave.
An airstrike damaged two houses in the town of Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, where the army has carried out new operations since Oct. 5, and killed at least 20 people late on Monday, the Palestinian official news agency WAFA and Hamas media said.
The Gaza health ministry did not immediately confirm the toll. Four other people were killed in the central Gazan town of Al-Zawayda around midnight on Monday, medics said.
Palestinian health officials said six people had also been killed in two separate Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City and Deir Al-Balah in the central area of the narrow enclave.
The Israeli military said, without giving details, that its forces had “eliminated terrorists” in the central Gaza Strip and Jabalia area. Israeli troops had also located weapons and explosives over the past day in the southern Rafah area, where “terrorist infrastructure sites” had been eliminated, it said.
Palestinians said the new attacks and Israeli orders for people to evacuate were aimed at emptying two northern Gaza towns and a refugee camp to create buffer zones.
Israel says its forces have killed hundreds of Palestinian gunmen and dismantled military infrastructure in Jabalia in the past month.
More than 43,300 Palestinians have been killed in more than a year of war in Gaza, the authorities in Gaza say, and much of the territory has been reduced to ruins.
The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.


Sudan paramilitaries kill 10 civilians: activists

Updated 05 November 2024
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Sudan paramilitaries kill 10 civilians: activists

PORT SUDAN: Ten civilians were killed in the central Sudanese state of Al-Jazira, pro-democracy activists said on Tuesday, in an attack they blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The Madani Resistance Committee, one of hundreds of volunteer groups coordinating aid across the country, said the RSF carried out the killings on Monday night in the village of Barborab, about 85 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of the state capital Wad Madani.


Gaza aid situation not much improved, US says as deadline for Israel looms

Updated 05 November 2024
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Gaza aid situation not much improved, US says as deadline for Israel looms

  • Washington told Israel on Oct. 13 it had 30 days to take steps to address humanitarian crisis in Gaza
  • Israel on Monday announced cancelling agreement with UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA)

WASHINGTON: Israel has taken some measures to increase aid access to Gaza but has so far failed to significantly turn around the humanitarian situation in the enclave, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Monday, as a deadline set by the US to improve the situation approaches.
The Biden administration told Israel in an Oct. 13 letter it had 30 days to take specific steps to address the dire humanitarian crisis in the strip, which has been pummeled for more than a year by Israeli ground and air operations that Israel says are aimed at rooting out Hamas militants.
Aid workers and UN officials say humanitarian conditions continue to be dire in Gaza.
“As of today, the situation has not significantly turned around. We have seen an increase in some measurements. We’ve seen an increase in the number of crossings that are open. But just if you look at the stipulated recommendations in the letter, those have not been met,” Miller said.
Miller said the results so far were “not good enough” but stressed that the 30-day period had not elapsed.
He declined to say what consequences Israel would face if it failed to implement the recommendations.
“What I can tell you that we will do is we will follow the law,” he said.
Washington, Israel’s main supplier of weapons, has frequently pressed Israel to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza since the war with Hamas began with the Palestinian militant group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on southern Israel.
The Oct. 13 letter, sent by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, said a failure to demonstrate a sustained commitment to implementing the measures on aid access may have implications for US policy and law.
Section 620i of the US Foreign Assistance Act prohibits military aid to countries that impede delivery of US humanitarian assistance.
Israel on Monday said it was canceling its agreement with the UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), citing accusations that some UNRWA staff had Hamas links.
UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini said Israel had scaled back the entry of aid trucks into the Gaza Strip to an average of 30 trucks a day, the lowest in a long time.
An Israeli government spokesman said no limit had been imposed on aid entering Gaza, with 47 aid trucks entering northern Gaza on Sunday alone.
Israeli statistics reviewed by Reuters last week showed that aid shipments allowed into Gaza in October remained at their lowest levels since October 2023.