Hezbollah claims drone attack near Haifa which injures at least 60 Israelis

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Summary:

• The UNIFIL peacekeeping force in Lebanon said that there had been further Israeli violations against its positions after Israeli tanks entered a UNIFIL post in the Lebanese town of Ramiya near the border with Israel.
• Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu urged the head of the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres to “immediately” get UN peacekeepers “out of harm’s way” in combat areas in southern Lebanon.
• The Lebanese Red Cross said a team of its paramedics were hit by a strike while on a rescue mission in the southern part of Lebanon, leaving them lightly wounded and two ambulances damaged.
• US officials believe that Israel has narrowed its targets in response to Iran’s recent attack to military and energy infrastructure.
• More than 42,227 Palestinians have been killed and 98,464 wounded in Israel's military offensive in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the Gaza health ministry. 

14/10/2024 - 00:06

Hezbollah threatens Israel with more attacks if Lebanon assault continues

Lebanese militant group Hezbollah threatened Israel with more attacks if its offensive in Lebanon continued, after a drone attack on a base near Israel's Haifa Sunday killed four soldiers.

The Iran-backed group "promises the enemy that what it witnessed today in southern Haifa is nothing compared to what awaits it if it decides to continue its aggression against our noble and dear people," it said.

14/10/2024 - 00:05

WHO-Red Cross resupply two hospitals in north Gaza

The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said late Sunday that a WHO-Red Cross operation had managed to resupply two hospitals in northern Gaza.

"WHO and partners finally managed to reach Kamal Adwan and Al-Sahaba hospitals yesterday after 9 attempts this past week," he posted on X.

13/10/2024 - 23:45

Israel says four soldiers killed in Hezbollah drone strike on military base

The Israeli military said four soldiers were killed by a Hezbollah drone strike Sunday on a military base south of Haifa amid an escalating conflict with the Iran-backed group in Lebanon.

"Four IDF (army) soldiers were killed in the incident and an additional seven were severely injured," the military said in a statement.

13/10/2024 - 23:40

Gaza rescuers say 15 killed in Israeli strike on school turned shelter

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli shelling late Sunday had killed at least 15 people at a school serving as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in central Gaza's Nuseirat camp.

The vast majority of the besieged Gaza Strip's 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once by the war, sparked by Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, with many seeking shelter in school buildings.

"The Al-Mufti school was bombarded with a large volley of Israeli artillery, resulting in an initial death toll of 15 martyrs, including children, women and entire families, and 50 wounded," said Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the agency. 

13/10/2024 - 23:27

Hezbollah says fired missiles at Israeli base near Haifa

Hezbollah said it fired missiles at a military base south of the Israeli city of Haifa Sunday, shortly after a drone attack on a training camp in the same area.

Fighters from the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group launched "missiles at maintenance and rehabilitation base 7200 south of Haifa", it said, after the earlier attack, which Israel said had wounded more than 60.

13/10/2024 - 22:40

Hezbollah says it ambushed Israeli troops along Lebanese border

Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said it had laid an ambush for Israeli soldiers, fighting them off on Lebanon’s southern border Sunday, in the latest of such reports throughout the day.

The Iran-backed group “ambushed” Israeli soldiers trying to “infiltrate” Lebanese territory near the border village of Mais al-Jabal, clashed with them, forcing them to withdraw, it said, claiming Israeli casualties.

13/10/2024 - 22:38

Israeli tanks deepen their push into the northern Gaza Strip

Israeli forces widened their raid into northern Gaza and tanks reached the north edge of Gaza City, pounding some districts of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood and forcing many families to leave their homes, residents said.

Residents said Israeli forces had effectively isolated Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, and Beit Lahiya in the far north of the enclave from Gaza City, blocking access between the two areas except upon permission for families willing to heed evacuation orders and leave the three towns.

Nine days into a major Israeli operation in northern Gaza, the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said Israeli strikes had killed around 300 Palestinians there. It said Israel’s bombardment of civilian houses and displacement shelters was intended to force residents to leave Gaza once and for all, which Israel denies.

13/10/2024 - 22:36

UN says Israeli tanks burst into peacekeeper base, Israel gives different account

The United Nations said on Sunday Israeli tanks had burst through the gates of a base of its peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, the latest accusation of Israeli violations and attacks denounced by its own allies.

The UNIFIL peacekeeping force said two Israeli Merkava tanks destroyed the main gate of a base and forcibly entered before dawn on Sunday morning. After the tanks left, shells exploded 100 metres away, releasing smoke which blew across the base and sickened UN personnel, it said in a statement.

In its version of events, the Israeli military said militants of the Iran-backed group Hezbollah had fired anti-tank missiles at Israeli troops, wounding 25 of them. The attack was very close to a UNIFIL post and a tank helping evacuate the casualties under fire then backed into the UNIFIL post, it said.

13/10/2024 - 21:42

UN chief says any attacks on Lebanon peacekeepers could be a war crime

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Sunday that any attacks against peacekeepers “may constitute a war crime,” his spokesperson said after Israeli tanks burst through the gates of a peacekeeping base in southern Lebanon.

It was the latest accusation of Israeli violations and attacks against the UN peacekeeping mission, known as UNIFIL, in recent days.

“UNIFIL peacekeepers remain in all positions and the UN flag continues to fly,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

13/10/2024 - 21:38

Israel military shows journalists area of operations in south Lebanon

The Israeli military on Sunday took a group of journalists across the border into south Lebanon, and showed what it claimed were three Hezbollah positions including two tunnels, just a few hundred metres from the border.

The Israeli soldiers escorting the media team, which included an AFP photographer, through the mountainous and densely forested terrain said they were near the Lebanese town of Naqura near the border.

The soldiers did not specify how far they were inside southern Lebanon, nor did the journalists see any other people in the area during their brief embed that lasted for about 90 minutes.

The movement of journalists was restricted by the military to a limited area, while the photos and video footage taken during the embed had to be approved by the military before publication.

13/10/2024 - 21:36

Sweden wants EU to brand Iran's Revolutionary Guards 'terror' group: PM

Sweden wants the European Union to officially deem Iran’s Revolutionary Guards a terrorist organisation after several attacks on Israeli targets in Sweden, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Sunday.

Sweden’s Sapo intelligence agency has accused Iran of recruiting members of Swedish criminal gangs to commit “acts of violence” against Israeli and other interests in Sweden, a claim Iran has denied.

Three attacks have been carried out against the Israeli embassy in Stockholm in the past year, and two attacks have targeted an Israeli military technology firm in the past six months.

13/10/2024 - 21:21

Israel rescuers say over 60 wounded in area Hezbollah claimed drone strike

An Israeli volunteer rescue service on Sunday said more than 60 people were wounded south of Haifa, where Hezbollah earlier claimed a drone strike that targeted a military base.

“With the help of United Hatzalah ambulance teams, we provided assistance to over 60 wounded people with varying degrees of injuries—critical, serious, moderate and mild,” the rescue service United Hatzalah said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.

Earlier Sunday, Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is at war with Israel, said it launched “a squadron of attack drones” at a military training camp in Binyamina, south of Haifa, in response to Israeli air strikes on the country.

13/10/2024 - 21:10

France's Macron asks Iran for de-escalation in the Middle East

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday urged his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian to support a “general de-escalation” in the Middle East during a conversation, the presidential office said.

In a separate discussion, Macron reiterated to Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati the “absolute necessity” of obtaining a ceasefire in Lebanon without further delay.

13/10/2024 - 20:31

Iran's Pezeshkian talks with France's Macron on Lebanon, Gaza: presidential website

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday called for an end to “crimes” in Lebanon and Gaza in a phone call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, the Iranian presidential website said.

They discussed ways to secure a “ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel”, a statement on the website said, adding that Pezeshkian “asked the French president to work together with other European countries to force the Zionist regime to stop the genocide and crimes in Gaza and Lebanon”.

13/10/2024 - 20:29

Drone strike in Israel wounds almost 40 as Hezbollah claims responsibility

Israeli rescue services said almost 40 people were wounded Sunday in a drone strike in the central city of Binyamina, three of them critically. The Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group claimed responsibility for one of the most serious strikes to land in Israel in a year of war.

Israel’s advanced air-defense systems mean that it’s rare for so many people to be hurt by drones or missiles. Israeli media reported that two drones were launched from Lebanon, and the military said one was intercepted.

It was not immediately clear who was hurt, military members or civilians, or what was hit.

Hezbollah said in a statement that it targeted an Israeli military training camp in retaliation for two Israeli strikes in Beirut on Thursday that killed 22 people.

13/10/2024 - 19:15

Israel army says 'under fire' tank collided with UN Lebanon post

The Israeli military said a tank collided with a UN peacekeeping post on Sunday, while coming under heavy fire in southern Lebanon during an incident when multiple soldiers were injured.

“An initial review showed that an IDF tank that was trying to evacuate injured soldiers while still under fire backed several meters into a UNIFIL post. Once the enemy fire stopped, and following the evacuation of the injured soldiers, the tank left the post,” the military said in a statement, after the UN mission accused two Israeli tanks of “forcibly” entering their position.

13/10/2024 - 19:08

At least 20 people hurt by drone hit in northern Israel: News report

A drone attack wounded at least 20 people in the northern Israel town of Binyamina on Sunday, N12 News television said.

The head of Israel’s ambulance service said that at least five were badly hurt.

13/10/2024 - 19:01

Israeli military intent on getting UNIFIL to pull back from border area of south Lebanon

FRANCE 24's Jerusalem correspondent Irris Makler gives her assessment of the Israeli military's view of the UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon. Five members of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were wounded in recent days during Israel's ground operation in southern Lebanon and on Sunday an Israeli tank entered a UNIFIL position in Ramiya near the border with Israel.

13/10/2024 - 18:12

Israel's UN envoy says 'incomprehensible' that UN keeping Lebanon peacekeepers in 'line of fire'

Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon said on Sunday it was "incomprehensible" that the United Nations would not move peacekeepers out of areas in southern Lebanon where Israeli forces are battling Hezbollah militants.

He also said in a statement the details of an incident on Sunday involving the UN peacekeeping mission, known as UNIFIL, were being investigated.

"Hezbollah terrorists are using UNIFIL outposts as hiding places and as places of ambushes. The UN's insistence on keeping the UNIFIL soldiers in the line of fire is incomprehensible," Danon said.

13/10/2024 - 18:09

Pentagon says will send THAAD missile defense system to Israel

The Pentagon said Sunday it will deploy a high-altitude anti-missile system and its US military crew to Israel to help the ally protect itself from potential Iranian missile attacks.

At the direction of US President Joe Biden, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin "authorized the deployment of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery and associated crew of US military personnel to Israel to help bolster Israel's air defenses following Iran's unprecedented attacks against Israel on April 13 and again on October 1," Pentagon press secretary Pat Ryder said in a statement.

Yesterday's key developments:

• US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin called his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant to express deep concern over reports that Israeli forces fired on UN peacekeeping positions in Lebanon.
• Forty countries contributing to the UN peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL) in Lebanon issued a statement to “strongly condemn” the attacks on UN forces.
• The Israeli military ordered residents of 23 southern Lebanese villages on Saturday to evacuate to areas north of the Awali River, which flows from the western Bekaa Valley into the Mediterranean.
• Israel observed Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, on Saturday amid a firestorm of international criticism over its military offensive in Lebanon and its soldiers firing on peacekeepers. 
• Hezbollah said it launched a drone attack Saturday on a military base in north Israel's Haifa, hours after claiming an attack on another base south of the city.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)