Senior Hezbollah commander may have been target of Beirut attack
Israeli media have been reporting that a very senior official of Hezbollah was the target of this attack. The Israeli army has put out warnings to the Israeli people, saying everything is on the table and to be prepared. There are now renewed calls for people to stay near bomb shelters.
The promise that Israel seems to be delivering is that that will put military pressure on Hezbollah to push them to agree to a ceasefire deal.
Oh the strategy that is not working with Hamas.... Try it on Hezbollah that's much bigger and better equipped...
Initial death toll in Beirut stands at 3: Ministry
Lebanon’s health ministry says three people have so far been confirmed killed in the attack in Beirut’s southern district. It said in a statement that 17 people have been brought to the hospital.
Death toll in Beirut attack rises to 8: Ministry
Lebanon’s health ministry has issued a statement saying eight people have now been confirmed killed in southern Beirut. It added that hospitals have so far received 59 injured, including eight in critical condition.
Israel on a rampage, emboldened by US support
The latest attack carried out by Israel on the southern Beirut suburbs is the latest proof that Israeli forces feel emboldened by the US’s unwavering support to “do anything they want”, says Rami Khoury, a professor at the American University of Beirut.
“Israel on a rampage,” Khoury told Al Jazeera, adding that while he does not believe an all-out regional war to be imminent, an escalation in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah appears inevitable.
Israel has long sought to defeat Hezbollah, which is better equipped than Hamas and has closer ties to Iran. “The problem is it has tried this many times without success,” Khoury added.
Lebanese envoy to UK warns Israeli invasion will be ‘doomsday’: Report
Rami Mortada, Lebanon’s ambassador to the UK, has told The Times newspaper that an Israeli ground invasion into his country will lead to a “doomsday” scenario of an all-out regional conflict on multiple fronts and the radicalisation of a new generation in Europe.
He warned that his country’s armed forces – who are trained by the British – would not “stand idly” by and watch if Israel were to put boots on the ground or “mount a heavy aerial attack”.
Mortada said the region was on a “perilous path” with the prospect of Iran and its proxy forces in Yemen, Iraq and Syria all joining the conflict should the crisis escalate.
“We are facing all the risks of an all-out regional conflict and that’s what we have been tirelessly trying to avoid,” he said, adding that Hezbollah had become a “formidable fighting force” in recent years and Israel should learn from history and its past “humiliating” defeats, such as an inconclusive month-long war it fought with the Shia group in 2006.
Hezbollah claims to have hit Israeli base with rockets
Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group has claimed to have struck Israel’s Meron military base in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights with “volleys of Katyusha rockets”. It said the attack came in response to Israel’s attack in southern Lebanon, without mentioning Israel’s latest attack in Beirut’s southern neighbourhood.
