BEIRUT: Lebanese were surveying the damage on Monday after overnight Israeli strikes hit nearly a dozen branches of a Hezbollah-run financial institution that Israel says is used to fund attacks but where many ordinary people keep their savings.
The strikes targeted Al-Qard Al-Hassan branches in the southern neighborhoods of Beirut, across southern Lebanon and in the eastern Bekaa Valley, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. One strike flattened a nine-story building in Beirut with a branch inside it. Smoke rose from several locations on Monday.
The Israeli military issued evacuation warnings ahead of the strikes. There were no reports of casualties.
Israel invaded Lebanon earlier this month, saying it aims to push Hezbollah from the border after more than a year of rocket, missile and drone attacks that began after Palestinian Hamas militants launched their surprise Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel from the Gaza Strip. Israeli airstrikes have pounded large areas of Lebanon for weeks, forcing over a million people to flee their homes.
The United States is hoping to revive diplomatic efforts to resolve both conflicts after the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in the Gaza Strip last week, but so far all sides appear to be digging in.
Hezbollah-run lender filled gaps left by Lebanon’s troubled banks
The Arabic language spokesman for the Israeli military, Avichay Adraee, said warplanes targeted several locations “used to store money for the military arm of Hezbollah,” including Al-Qard Al-Hassan, which he said finances arms purchases and is used to pay fighters.
He said Hezbollah stores hundreds of millions of dollars in the branches, without providing evidence, and that the strikes were aimed at preventing the group from rearming.
The institution has more than 30 branches across Lebanon. It tried to reassure customers, saying it had evacuated all branches and relocated gold and other deposits to safe areas.
Many customers are civilians unaffiliated with Hezbollah. The registered nonprofit has long served as an alternative to Lebanon’s banks, which have imposed restrictions in the face of a severe financial crisis that began in 2019.
Bulldozers cleared mounds of rubble at the site of one strike. Clothes, furniture and the remains of a beauty salon were seen in the debris. Al-Qard Al-Hassan documents were scattered across the area, but there was no sign of cash or other valuables.
Lebanon assesses damage after Israel strikes Hezbollah-run financial institution
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Lebanon assesses damage after Israel strikes Hezbollah-run financial institution
- Strikes targeted Al-Qard Al-Hassan branches in the southern neighborhoods of Beirut, across southern Lebanon and in the eastern Bekaa Valley
- One strike flattened a nine-story building in Beirut with a branch inside it
Swiss to host conference on occupied Palestinian territories
- The first phase of the Israel-Hamas truce was drawing to a close on Saturday, but negotiations on the next stage, which should secure a permanent ceasefire, have so far been inconclusive
GENEVA: Switzerland said it will host an international conference on March 7 on the protection of Palestinian civilians in the occupied territories, as called for in a UN vote.
The 196 signatories to the Geneva Convention will be invited to the meeting, which will be attended by ambassadors, a spokesperson for the Swiss foreign ministry said.
On Sept. 18, the UN General Assembly mandated Switzerland to organize the conference, given that the Alpine country is the depository of the international treaties setting out the rules of war and humanitarian law.
Such “conferences of high contracting parties” cannot take binding decisions but can “reaffirm the rules of international humanitarian law and the obligations,” the Swiss government says on its website.
BACKGROUND
Israeli settlers have stepped up their attacks on Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank, while the army has launched a major security operation that has displaced some 40,000 Palestinians.
Since the UN vote and after 15 months of intensive war, a tenuous ceasefire was agreed upon in the Gaza Strip in January that allowed for the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and for humanitarian aid to reach the besieged enclave, where 90 percent of housing has been destroyed by Israeli bombardment.
Meanwhile, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli settlers have stepped up their attacks on Palestinian civilians,
while the Israeli army has launched a major security operation that has displaced some 40,000 Palestinians.
The Gaza war began after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to a tally of official Israeli figures.
The Israeli retaliation has killed more than 48,000 people in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the UN has deemed reliable.
The first phase of the Israel-Hamas truce was drawing to a close on Saturday, but negotiations on the next stage, which should secure a permanent ceasefire, have so far been inconclusive.
The ceasefire took effect on Jan. 19 after more than 15 months of war.
Lebanon orders urgent hospital checks in border areas hit by Israeli offensive
- Lebanese ‘repeatedly face arduous task of reconstruction,’ grand mufti says in Ramadan message
- President Joseph Aoun to visit Saudi Arabia, Egypt on first foreign visit since election
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Health Minister, Rakan Nasser Al-Din, announced on Saturday a comprehensive assessment of hospital needs in border areas that suffered significant damage during the recent Israeli offensive.
Al-Din traveled to the south on his first mission following the confidence vote in parliament for the government of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.
He inspected several hospitals in the border area that were badly damaged during the recent Israeli offensive.
During a visit to Mays Al-Jabal Governmental Hospital, Al-Din said he wanted to see the extensive destruction caused by the brutal aggression that Lebanon has faced.
FASTFACT
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian hoped that ‘next Ramadan, we will witness the establishment of the state of Palestine, thanks to the perseverance and struggle of its people and the consensus of Arabs and Muslims on renewing the experience of a free and sovereign national state.’
The minister highlighted the need to provide support and assistance, saying that the will to endure cannot be strengthened without aiding hospitals, particularly those in border areas.
Al-Din also visited hospitals in Bint Jbeil, Salah Ghandour, and Tebnine.
He told workers and activists in the towns that the government is committed to rebuilding and restoring all infrastructure, particularly health facilities.
“This will involve exploring avenues for reconstruction, enhancing medication availability, improving health care mechanisms, and strengthening human resources to ensure the effective operation of hospitals,” he said.
Lebanon’s “great ordeal is its repeated need, every decade or two, for reconstruction,” Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian said in his Ramadan message.
“We have tens of thousands of citizens who have lost their loved ones, their homes, or their villages.
“And there is no reconstruction without reform — not only because of resource-related challenges but because reform ensures that rebuilding and development are sustainable.
“Over two decades, we have seen how corruption destroyed the reconstruction and development efforts.”
Derian also referred to “the calamities and hardships facing Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, and the wider Arab world.”
He said that “one of the first signs of change is the downfall of those responsible for the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, along with the deaths of hundreds of Lebanese and tens of thousands of Syrians.
“This dark cloud over Lebanon and Syria has been lifted all at once,” he said.
Derian added: “We know the difficulties are great and numerous.”
He hoped that “next Ramadan, we will witness the establishment of the state of Palestine, thanks to the perseverance and struggle of its people and the consensus of Arabs and Muslims on renewing the experience of a free and sovereign national state.”
Derian reflected on Saudi Founding Day, which was celebrated in an atmosphere of security and prosperity.
He said even the Americans and Russians found no better place to meet than Saudi Arabia, which plays a significant global role for itself, as well as for Arabs and Muslims.
The grand mufti’s message came as Lebanese President Joseph Aoun prepares to undertake his first foreign visit on Monday after being elected president.
Saudi Arabia will be his first destination, with Foreign Affairs Minister Youssef Rajji accompanying him.
According to the Presidential Palace, Aoun will meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before heading to Cairo to take part in the emergency Arab Summit on the rebuilding of Gaza.
A source at the presidential palace told Arab News that “this is not an official visit to Saudi Arabia but a response to the crown prince’s invitation to visit the Kingdom.”
No agreements will be signed during the visit, said the source.
According to the source, other ministers will accompany Aoun on a later visit to sign agreements and protocols to strengthen cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.
Aoun congratulated Lebanon’s Muslims on the arrival of Ramadan, which coincides with the beginning of Lent for Christians on Monday.
“This allows Lebanese of all religions to share the spiritual values embodied by fasting,” he said.
The grand mufti also said that the president’s election and inauguration provided Lebanon with opportunities for relief and recovery, including the possibility of peace in the south, the restoration of state authority over its territory, and the enhancement of relations with neighboring Arab nations and the international community.
“Now that the government has gained the confidence of parliament, it is entering a phase of follow-up and testing.
“This is intended to demonstrate to the Lebanese people, as well as to Arab and international public opinion, that the Lebanese state alone has the authority to make decisions on its territory.
“It alone shapes its relations with its Arab brothers and the rest of its friends,” said Derian.
Israel says ‘will not be deterred’ after Hamas issues hostage video
- The three-minute video shows the emotional farewell between Israeli-Argentinian Yair Horn and his brother Eitan
- In the video, Eitan Horn relays a message from Hamas urging the Israeli government to “sign the second phase of the (ceasefire) deal and return us home“
JERUSALEM: The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed as “Hamas propaganda” Saturday footage released by the Palestinian militant group showing what appeared to be Israeli hostages in Gaza.
“The Hamas terrorist organization has, this evening, disseminated another cruel propaganda video in which our hostages are forced to engage in psychological warfare,” Netanyahu’s office said.
The release of the footage by Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, came as the first stage of the Gaza ceasefire which took effect on January 19 was due to expire on Saturday with no clarity about what happens next.
The three-minute video shows the emotional farewell between Israeli-Argentinian Yair Horn and his brother Eitan, suggesting that it was filmed shortly before Yair’s release on February 15.
In the video, Eitan Horn relays a message from Hamas urging the Israeli government to “sign the second phase of the (ceasefire) deal and return us home.”
“Get everyone out and do not separate families,” he says.
The footage is accompanied by a message from Hamas reading: “Only a ceasefire agreement brings them back alive.”
It is followed by ticking sounds and an image of an egg timer with the message: “Time is running out.”
In a statement after the video’s release, Netanyahu’s office said: “Israel will not be deterred by Hamas propaganda.
“We will continue to act relentlessly for the return of all of our hostages and until all objectives of the war are met.”
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, an Israeli group that campaigns for the release of all captives from Gaza, said the Horn family had given its permission for the footage of the two brothers to be published.
“It breaks our heart to see Eitan in this difficult situation, saying goodbye to his brother, (Y)air, who is being freed while Eitan remains held in Hamas hell for 512 days now,” the Horn family said in a statement.
“We demand from the decision-makers: Look Eitan in the eyes. Don’t stop the agreement that has already brought dozens of hostages back to us. They are running out of time! Bring everyone home, now, in one phase.”
Hamas has offered to release all remaining hostages in one go in a second phase of the ceasefire. Israel has called for releases to continue in batches in an extension of the first stage of the ceasefire that has been rejected by the militant group.
UN chief warns return to war in Gaza would be ‘catastrophic’
- Guterres said a “permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages are essential to preventing escalation”
UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday warned against a return to hostilities in war-torn Gaza, saying such an outcome would be “catastrophic.”
As the first phase of the Israel-Hamas truce agreement drew to a close with uncertainty over the next steps, Guterres said in a statement that a “permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages are essential to preventing escalation and averting more devastating consequences for civilians.”
Kurdish militants declare a ceasefire in a 40-year insurgency in Turkiye
- The PKK declaration was published by the Firat News Agency, a media outlet close to the group, on Saturday
- It referred to the insurgents’ leader, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned by Turkiye since 1999
ISTANBUL: Kurdish militants who have waged a 40-year insurgency in Turkiye declared a ceasefire on Saturday in what could mark a significant boost to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government, two days after their imprisoned leader called for the group to disarm.
The announcement by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, comes against the backdrop of fundamental changes in the region, including the reconfiguration of power in neighboring Syria after the toppling of President Bashar Assad, the weakening of the Hezbollah militant movement in Lebanon and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
The conflict between Turkiye and the PKK has led to tens of thousands of deaths since it began in 1984. The ceasefire is the first sign of a breakthrough since peace talks between the PKK and Ankara broke down in the summer of 2015.
The PKK declaration was published by the Firat News Agency, a media outlet close to the group, on Saturday. It referred to the insurgents’ leader, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned by Turkiye since 1999.
“We declare a ceasefire effective today to pave the way for the implementation of Leader Apo’s call for peace and democratic society. None of our forces will take armed action unless attacked,” it said, referring to Ocalan by his nickname.
A ceasefire follows a campaign of pressure on Kurds
On Thursday, a delegation of Kurdish politicians announced Ocalan’s call for the PKK to lay down its arms and disband after visiting him on his island prison.
In its statement, the PKK’s executive committee said Ocalan’s call indicated that a “new historical process has begun in Kurdistan and the Middle East.” Kurdistan refers to the parts of Turkiye, Iraq, Syria and Iran inhabited by Kurds.
While stating that it would “comply with and implement the requirements of the call from our own side,” the PKK emphasized that “democratic politics and legal grounds must also be suitable for success.”
Ocalan’s call came as the main pro-Kurdish political party in Turkiye has faced pressure, with several of its mayors being removed from office in recent months and replaced by government appointees.
The PKK also appealed for Ocalan to be released from Imrali prison, located in the Marmara Sea, to “personally direct and execute” a party congress that would lead to the militants laying down their arms.
The peace initiative between the Turkish state and the PKK, which is considered a terrorist organization by Turkiye and its Western allies, was started in October by Erdogan’s coalition partner, Devlet Bahceli, a far-right politician who suggested that Ocalan could be granted parole if his group renounces violence and disbands.
Erdogan said Ocalan’s message was a “new phase” in peace efforts in Turkiye.
“There is an opportunity to take a historic step toward tearing down the wall of terror that has stood between (Turkish and Kurdish peoples’) 1,000-year-old brotherhood,” Erdogan said on Friday.
The government’s first response to the ceasefire came from Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz. “A new phase has been entered toward the goal of a terror-free Turkiye. … We hope that this opportunity will be seized, this effort will be concluded quickly and successfully,” he posted on X.
Erdogan’s allies eye Kurdish support for changing the constitution
Some believe the main aim of the reconciliation effort is for Erdogan’s government to garner Kurdish support for a new constitution that would allow him to remain in power beyond 2028, when his term ends.
Bahceli has openly called for a new constitution, saying it was essential for Turkiye’s future that Erdogan remain in power. Erdogan and Bahceli are reportedly seeking parliamentary support from the pro-Kurdish People’s Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM.
“There will be a series of meetings next week, including state officials and politicians, and many things will become clearer and more concrete. We hope that everything will be arranged in the next three months,” said Sirri Sureyya Onder, one of the DEM members who visited Ocalan in prison on Thursday.
Ocalan, 75, wields significant influence in the Kurdish movement despite his 25-year imprisonment, during which the PKK has been led by top figures who have fled and found sanctuary in the Kurdish region in northern Iraq.
In Syria, Kurdish fighters — who have ties to the PKK — have been involved in intense fighting with Turkish-backed forces on the ground there.
The leader of the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces has said Ocalan’s call for a ceasefire does not apply to his group in Syria.
The Turkish government, however, says all Kurdish groups it claims are tied to the PKK — whether in Turkiye, Syria or Iraq — must disband.
In recent years, the PKK has been limited to isolated attacks inside Turkiye as the Turkish military, backed by armed drones, has pushed PKK insurgents increasingly across the mountainous border into Iraq.
