Israeli strikes on Lebanon kill 12, including five Hezbollah fighters
A security source told Reuters that five of the dead were Hezbollah fighters. Khodr said seven of the dead were Syrian nationals, who often work in the agricultural fields of the Bekaa region.
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Hindustan Times
12 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Gaza civil defence says 30 killed in food queue by Israeli fire
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 30 people when they opened fire Wednesday on a crowd waiting for humanitarian aid in the north of the Palestinian territory. Gaza has been in the grip of war for almost 22 months and, according to a UN-mandated report, its two-million-plus inhabitants now face an unfolding famine.(REUTERS) The Israeli military said it was reviewing the incident north of Gaza City, as the United Nations said that pauses in Israel's offensive against Hamas were not enough to help the population through a deepening hunger crisis. The UN humanitarian agency, OCHA, said that four days into Israel's "tactical pauses", people were still dying from hunger and malnutrition, alongside casualties among those seeking aid. Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that "at least 30 martyrs were killed" as they waited for aid north of Gaza City, and 300 wounded. Bassal said Israeli forces opened fire on the crowd waiting for food. Mohammed Abu Salmiya, director of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, said his facility had received 35 bodies from the shooting, which reportedly struck about three kilometres (two miles) southwest of the Zikim crossing point for aid trucks entering Gaza. Hours earlier, 14 Palestinians were killed in four other incidents, three near aid distribution sites, the civil defence agency said. In two of the incidents, the Israeli army said it fired warning shots at people approaching the aid sites. Pauses not enough While the military did not comment on the incident at Zikim, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office did say that Hamas militants were "stealing" food from the latest deliveries. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing many areas mean AFP cannot independently verify tolls and details provided by the civil defence and other parties. Gaza has been in the grip of war for almost 22 months and, according to a UN-mandated report, its two-million-plus inhabitants now face an unfolding famine. The war was triggered by Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 60,138 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run government's health ministry. Food aid air-drops Amid an international outcry over Gaza's food crisis, Israel has observed a daytime pause in military operations since the weekend on secure routes and in built-up areas to boost aid delivery and distribution. Air drops of food have also been staged by the Jordanian air force, the United Arab Emirates and Britain. France said it plans to start delivering 40 tonnes of aid from Friday. OCHA said that the conditions for delivering aid were "far from sufficient" to meet the immense needs of its "desperate, hungry people". Israel's pauses alone "do not allow for the continuous flow of supplies required to meet immense needs levels in Gaza", OCHA said in an update. "For example, for UN drivers to access the Kerem Shalom crossing -- a fenced-off area -- Israeli authorities must approve the mission, provide a safe route through which to travel, provide multiple 'green lights' on movement, as well as a pause in bombing, and, ultimately, open the iron gates to allow them to enter." "Desperate, hungry people" offload the small amounts of aid from the trucks that are able to exit the crossings, it added. Ceasefire talks halted Amid deadlocked talks on a ceasefire, US special envoy Steve Witkoff was to visit Israel on Thursday. Witkoff has been involved in indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire deal. But the discussions broke down last week when Israel and the United States recalled their delegations from Doha. Netanyahu announced the following day that Israel and the United States were "considering alternative options to bring our hostages home". Witkoff "will meet with officials to discuss next steps in addressing the situation in Gaza", a US official told AFP. Arab countries including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Egypt called this week on Hamas to disarm and end its rule of Gaza, in a bid to end the devastating war.
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
We will not submit to Israel: Hezbollah rejects calls to surrender weapons
Hezbollah's deputy leader Naim Qassem on Wednesday rejected international calls for the disarmament of the Lebanese militant group, saying such demands only serve Israeli interests and threaten Lebanon's sovereignty."Those who call for submitting arms practically demand submitting them to Israel We will not submit to Israel," Qassem declared in a televised address marking one year since the assassination of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr by Israeli remarks come as the United States heightened pressure on the Lebanese government to formally commit to Hezbollah's disarmament, which Washington views as a critical step toward halting Israeli military operations in Lebanon. Despite a ceasefire reached in November 2024, Israeli strikes have continued, causing thousands of MOUNTS ON BEIRUTAccording to news agency Reuters, Washington is urging Beirut to issue a formal cabinet-level commitment to disarm Hezbollah. This, they say, is a prerequisite for the resumption of ceasefire the existing truce, Hezbollah fighters were supposed to retreat north of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the Israeli border -- leaving the Lebanese Army and United Nations peacekeepers to oversee security in the the group has not fully complied and has instead shown reluctance to surrender its his speech, Qassem accused the US of prioritising Israeli interests over Lebanon's sovereignty."Those who call for disarmament on a domestic, global or Arab level serve the Israeli project," he said. "Israel will not be able to defeat us, and it will not be able to take Lebanon hostage."Qassem also criticised US Special Envoy Tom Barrack, who has been actively mediating the ceasefire process. "The United States wants to remove our missiles and drones because they scare Israel," he WITHDRAWAL A PRECONDITIONOne of Hezbollah's key conditions for even considering disarmament is the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from several posts in southern Lebanon — positions Israel continues to hold despite the ceasefire."The imminent danger is the Israeli aggression this aggression must stop," Qassem said. "All political discourse in the country must be directed towards stopping the aggression, not towards handing over weapons to Israel."He insisted that the ceasefire agreement pertains strictly to areas south of the Litani River and that Hezbollah's weapons remain a purely internal matter.A Lebanese official, speaking anonymously to the news agency AFP, confirmed that Beirut is under significant international pressure to address Hezbollah's status in an upcoming cabinet MEETING PLANNED TO DISCUSS ARMS MONOPOLYadvertisementLebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has called for a cabinet session next week to deliberate over "the extension of state sovereignty over all its territories exclusively by its own forces."According to local media, the meeting will also address aspects of Ambassador Barrack's proposal, which envisions a phased disarmament of Hezbollah over a four-month period in exchange for a complete halt to Israeli airstrikes and military Hezbollah remains defiant, insisting that discussions on its weapons are contingent on Israel first ceasing its attacks and pulling out of the remaining Lebanese territory."Weapons are an internal Lebanese affair that has nothing to do with the Israeli enemy," Qassem reiterated.- EndsWith inputs from Agencies Must Watch
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Middle East crisis: Dozens killed while seeking aid at Gaza crossing; US envoy heads to Israel for talks
At least 37 Palestinians were killed on Wednesday (local time) while waiting for food at a crossing in the Gaza Strip, AP reported citing a local hospital. The source of the gunfire remains unclear, and the Israeli military, which oversees the crossing, has not issued a statement. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now This comes as the US envoy is headed to Israel for talks. Shifa Hospital in Gaza City reported that casualties occurred among large crowds gathered at the Zikim Crossing, the main route for humanitarian aid into northern Gaza. US envoy Steve Witkoff, who has spearheaded the Donald Trump administration's push to end the nearly 22-month conflict and secure the release of hostages taken during Hamas' October 7 attack, is set to arrive in Israel on Thursday for discussions on the Gaza crisis. At least 41 people were killed across Gaza on Tuesday, according to hospitals. Twelve died near the Zikim crossing when Israeli forces allegedly opened fire on aid-seekers. Strikes killed 13 more in Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoun. In Khan Younis, 16 were killed near the Morag corridor while waiting for aid. Since the war began, 89 children and 65 adults in Gaza have died from malnutrition, AP reported citing local health authorities. Israel denies widespread hunger, disputing reports from the UN and aid groups. The conflict began with Hamas' Oct 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and led to the abduction of 251. Israel's response has killed over 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, whose figures are widely cited despite operating under Hamas.
