Israel continues to attack Hezbollah’s ‘military and political assets’

Powerful blasts were heard overnight across the capital. Security sources say there were 11 consecutive strikes similar to the night when Israel assassinated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an underground bunker last week.

The Israeli army has made no statement. Israeli media are saying the possible target was Hashem Safieddine, a top figure in Hezbollah and Nasrallah’s cousin. He is a potential successor. If indeed he was killed, this would be another major setback for the organisation. Israel is attacking anyone or anything that is associated with Hezbollah.

Officials in the organisation talk about the possibility of an Israeli mole. There is a lot of disarray in its ranks. Israel is going after its military and political assets.

No comment from Israel, Hezbollah on report Hashem Safieddine targeted in Beirut strike

It wasn’t just one bomb. It wasn’t just two bombs. It wasn’t just three bombs. It was 11 in total hitting the southern suburb of Dahiyeh. We’re hearing that bunker busters were used. That’s the nickname for very, very large munitions that can tunnel into the ground and then explode.

I’m going to stress that it is only the Israeli media that has said the target was Hashem Safieddine.

Hashem Safieddine is a very crucial part of Hezbollah. He was there at the beginning in 1982, when the party was formed. He’s had a variety of roles through the years … and is widely tipped to become the next secretary-general of the Hezbollah party.

Let’s just take precedents here in other assassinations. What Hezbollah does is be very careful. They either try and find some DNA evidence or visual evidence of the person being assassinated, and then they confirm it.

So if he has been assassinated, then this is going to be a blow to Hezbollah. But Hezbollah is an adaptable organisation, and it knows that its leaders are in the firing line. So there will be some sort of contingency that they will have in place to deal with things like this.

Now … the Israeli military officially has not said they were targeting him, and Hezbollah hasn’t confirmed either.

Israeli bombardment targeted meeting of Hezbollah leaders in Beirut bunker: Reports

Israeli media confirms, according to unnamed military sources, that the target of the attack was Hashem Safieddine.

Some reports indicate that there was a meeting of top leaders of Hezbollah in a bunker and that location was the target of those successive air strikes using those large munitions.

We have to remind our readers that any report in the Israeli media concerning military issues is subject to the military censor. So it is unlikely that those media reports did not rely on information cleared by the Israeli army. But there is no confirmation yet from the Israeli side and the Lebanese that the assassination attempt was, in fact, successful.

_{Smoke rises over Beirut’s southern suburbs after a strike on Thursday night}

Israeli army has ‘a never-ending list’ of potential targets

The amount of intelligence Israel has on Hezbollah is enormous. Some speculation among analysts – and this is not confirmed – is the Israeli military could have been targeting a Shura Council meeting to confirm Hashem Safieddine as the next secretary-general.

The Israelis seem to have a never-ending list of targets. It’s almost as if they’ve tagged people. They know where they are and at what time. And even after that major security breach over the past two weeks, it’s clear just how much they’ve infiltrated the intelligence system.

It seems Hezbollah cannot end the eyes on it that Israel has. We’re going to have to wait and see. The Israelis have said nothing. Usually they’re trying to confirm their target was assassinated, which of course takes time.

(International law prohibits without exception, the extra-judicial killing and considers it as a grave violation of international humanitarian law, and human rights protocols)

Israel launches strike on Masnaa border crossing area: Report

The Israeli military struck “vital transportation infrastructure” with two missiles at the border crossing between Syria and Lebanon, the Lebanese Al Mayadeen news outlet reports, halting traffic between the countries.

On Thursday, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee accused Hezbollah of smuggling weapons into Lebanon from Syria through the crossing. Lebanon’s Transport Minister Ali Hamieh later said all border crossings were being monitored by the government.

Lebanon’s Transport Minister Ali Hamieh has confirmed the attack, telling the Reuters news agency two missiles have created a four-metre (12-foot) wide crater inside Lebanese territory.

No casualties or injuries have been reported so far. The road has been used by hundreds of thousands of people, mostly Syrians, to flee over the border to escape Israel’s bombardment of Lebanon over the past 10 days.

On Thursday, Israel accused Hezbollah of using the Masnaa crossing to transport military equipment into Lebanon.

_{Vehicles are seen at the Masnaa border crossing between Lebanon and Syria on November 1, 2018}

Israeli military claims attack on Lebanon-Syria border targeted tunnel

The Israeli military says its strike on Lebanon’s Masnaa border crossing with Syria, which cut off a road used by hundreds of thousands to flee bombardment, targeted a 3.5km (2 mile) tunnel used by Hezbollah to transfer weapons.

“Precise intelligence” allowed it to destroy military buildings, weapons depots and other infrastructure, it said in a statement.

The army also pledged to continue the attacks, claiming to protect the “security of the citizens” of Israel.

_{People carry their belongings while walking on the rubble, after an Israeli strike, as they flee Lebanon due to ongoing hostilities, at Masnaa border crossing with Syria, in Lebanon, Friday}

Hezbollah defiant as Israeli ground offensive stalls in south Lebanon

Overnight and in the past few minutes we are hearing that dull thud of artillery still coming into southern Lebanon. We are hearing that air strikes still continue in several places, including the east of Lebanon.

This aerial campaign is still going on and that’s really interesting because the Israelis announced a ground offensive. That they were going to come in. They’ve tried to come in a few times now and have been beaten back successfully by Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s been reflecting this in their statements. They’re now a much more defiant organisation than they were just two weeks ago when that pager attack happened, the walkie-talkie attack happened. When Hassan Nasrallah said we’ve faced losses … there was a real sense of shock going through Hezbollah.

But, right now, I think Hezbollah is feeling that it has the upper hand when it comes to ground fighting.

Iran’s foreign minister lands in Lebanon

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi landed in Beirut, Lebanese state media report, just hours after Israeli air strikes hit the airport’s perimeter. “An Iranian plan has landed at the Rafik Hariri International Airport with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on board,” the Lebanese National News Agency said.

It is the first visit by a top Iranian official since an Israeli strike killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut last week.

Araghchi is set to meet Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and speaker of parliament Nabih Berri, who is a close ally of Iran-backed Hezbollah, according to his schedule.

Iranian foreign minister’s visit to Lebanon an ‘act of defiance’

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived a short while ago via Beirut’s international airport. No doubt the visit is seen as an act of defiance.

Last week the Israeli military threatened to target Iranian, Syrian or what it calls “hostile” planes because it believes they have been using the Beirut airport not for civilian purposes.

Many here in Lebanon thought they had been abandoned. But now they believe Iran is showing solidarity – especially after it fired ballistic missiles at Israel – that it wants to change the equation, that Iran’s message is it’s ready to use force to help Hezbollah.

But right now there are also efforts to reach an agreement on a new president and government. So this is Iran saying: we also have a seat at the negotiating table.

Iran calls for support from regional countries for Lebanon

The Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says he is visiting Lebanon “to make clear that Iran will always stand with people of Lebanon”. “We invite other regional governments to also display steadfastness in their support for Lebanon, especially amid onslaught by Israeli regime,” he said on X.

The Iranian officials and local media confirmed the visit earlier amid Israel’s ongoing attacks on Lebanon.

Iran’s IRGC to hit Israeli energy sites if attacked: Report

Iran will target Israeli energy and gas installations if Israel attacks it, according to the semi-official Iranian news agency SNN, quoting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) deputy commander Ali Fadavi.

“If the occupiers make such a mistake, we will target all their energy sources, installations and all refineries and gas fields,” Fadavi said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after Iran’s missile barrage this week that it “made a big mistake” and “will pay for it”.

Iran’s IRGC said on Tuesday it fired missiles at Israel in response to deadly Israeli attacks against people in Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the assassinations of top IRGC, Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.

Iranian FM says country stands by Hezbollah during Beirut visit

During a visit to Beirut, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has promised harsher retaliation if Israel strikes Iran in response to Tuesday’s missile barrage. In a news conference, he said the attack was “legitimate self-defence based on the UN Charter”.

“Unlike Israel, which targets residential areas, we only attacked military centres,” Araqchi said. “We do not intend to continue the attacks unless the Zionist regime chooses to continue its attacks.”

He said his presence in the city under bombardment signals Iran’s support for Hezbollah and expressed backing for a ceasefire in Lebanon, contingent on Hezbollah’s approval and a simultaneous ceasefire in Gaza.

Iran supreme leader speaking now after Friday prayers

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addressed a mass gathering days after Iran’s attack on Israel.

He delivered a rare sermon on Friday – his first since his country’s missile attack on Israel and also the first since Israel launched its wave of attacks on Hezbollah strongholds.

Thousands of Iranians were gathered in the capital, Tehran, to catch a glimpse of the leader, with a photograph of Khamenei placed side by side with a picture of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on the main stage.

Some held the green and yellow flag of Hezbollah, while others held the Palestinian flag.

“The policies adopted by our enemy is to sow the seeds of division and sedition, to drive a wedge among all the Muslims. They are the same enemies to the Palestinians, Lebanese, Egyptians, and the Iraqis. They are the enemy to the Yemeni and Syrian people,” Iran’s supreme leader told the large crowd.

“Our enemy is one.”

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says every country has the right to defend itself from aggressors. Muslim nations have to prepare their “defence against the common enemy”.

Khamenei also said Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel and Iran’s recent ballistic missile strike were “legal and legitimate”. “Each and every country, each and every people have the ultimate right to defend themselves against the ultimate tyranny,” Khamenei told the cheering crowd.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says his country won’t “procrastinate or rush to carry out its duty” in confronting Israel. He also spoke on behalf of Palestine.

“The Palestinian people have a lawful right to defend themselves. To stand up to those criminals – the occupation forces. There is not a single court or international organisation that can blame the Palestinian people for simply defending their homeland,” said Khamenei during his Friday sermon.

Ayatollah Khamenei ‘focused on unity’ in rare speech

Iran’s supreme leader sees the possibility of a regional war is real. That’s why he is calling on Muslims to be united.

There has been criticism in the past decade – particularly when it comes to Iranian policies throughout the region – that Iran is being isolationist. Now it seems Khamenei is attempting to fix that.

It’s a call for action for the whole region. In the second part of his speech, he spoke in Arabic, not in Persian. That he decided to publicly lead the Friday prayers is also a message to the Israelis that Iranian leaders are not forced into hiding.

It's clear Iran is only getting emboldened by the current actions of Israel. Exactly what Netanyahu wants, a regional war to reshape the power balance in the ME.

‘Any strike at Israel is a service to entire region and world’

Iran’s supreme leader delivered the second part of his speech in Arabic, directly addressing the Arab people of the region.

Khamenei said interference by foreign powers supporting Israel is the most pressing issue in the region. But he said resistance against Israeli aggression has “set the Zionist regime back 70 years” as it is now fighting to survive as it did at the time of its founding.

He called on the people of Lebanon not to despair and to continue standing up to Israel.

Khamenei pointed out that dozens of top Iranian figures including a president were assassinated in the span of several months in 1981, but that only strengthened the establishment.

The same will be true for Lebanon, which lost leaders like Hezbollah founder Abbas al-Musawi and cleric and politician Musa al-Sadr but became stronger, he promised.

“Any strikes at the Zionist regime from any person and any organisation is a service to the whole region and perhaps the whole of humanity,” the Iranian leader said.

Hezbollah bureau chief Abdullah Safieddine, the brother of Hashem Safieddine, could be seen seated next to the top officials before the speech began.

Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution presence in the commemoration ceremony of the great fighter and the flag bearer of the resistance, martyr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah pic.twitter.com/mFIgyOyDkc

— IRNA News Agency (@IrnaEnglish) October 4, 2024

Middle East ‘on precipice of a region-wide armed conflict’

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has reminded all sides of their commitments to international humanitarian law as the region faces the prospect of all-out war amid intensifying Israeli attacks.

“The ICRC calls on all sides to avoid the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, as these cause indiscriminate harm, leading to a potentially significant toll on civilian lives, homes, and essential infrastructure,” the organisation said in a statement.

It said millions of displaced people must be allowed to return, humanitarian assistance must be allowed to reach civilians in need, and ambulances, healthcare facilities and first responders must be protected.

As violence intensifies across the Middle East, the region sits on the precipice of a region-wide armed conflict. We urgently remind all parties of their obligations under IHL, in particular the need to protect civilians and civilian objects.

Statement👉🏽https://t.co/WbQz0Zuygx pic.twitter.com/phNFQXOFLc

— ICRC (@ICRC) October 4, 2024

_{A wounded girl lies in a hospital bed in the southern village of Saksakiyeh, Lebanon, on September 24}

Hezbollah claims attack on army base in northern Israel

The Lebanese group says its fighters bombed the Ilania military base in northern Israel with rockets.

A Hezbollah statement on Telegram said the attack was carried out at 10:20am (07:20 GMT) in response to ongoing Israeli attacks on the Lebanese and Palestinian people.

Israel confirms Hezbollah attack on Haifa, reports no deaths

Two rockets launched from Lebanon at Israel’s Haifa region led to the activation of warning sirens in several towns, according to an army statement. Both rockets were intercepted by air defence systems and there were no reports of deaths in the incident at 10:52am (07:52 GMT), it said.

Hezbollah announced the attack earlier in a statement on Telegram.

Israeli army tells UN peacekeepers in Lebanon to leave border positions

The UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, UNIFIL, has confirmed to Al Jazeera that the Israeli army has asked its troops to leave some of their positions close to the border amid a potential escalation of its ground incursion.

Israel is accusing Hezbollah of using UNIFIL, along with Lebanese civilians, as shields. The UNIFIL command confirmed it will not evacuate and “will keep reviewing the security situation”.

Earlier, the Israeli military ordered communities north of the UN-proposed buffer zone to evacuate for the first time since the war began.

WHO medical supplies arrive in Lebanon

The first batch of medical supplies mobilised by the World Health Organization (WHO) to treat thousands of victims of Israeli attacks arrived in Beirut. Two more flights are planned for this afternoon with another scheduled for tomorrow, according to WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

The first flight with @WHO medical supplies - enough to treat tens of thousands of people with injuries - arrived in Beirut, #Lebanon, an hour ago.

Two more flights are planned to arrive this afternoon, carrying more trauma supplies, as well as mental health and cholera… pic.twitter.com/tK2lE1VlYw

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) October 4, 2024

Four medics killed in Israeli air strike on southern Lebanon

The official National News Agency says four health workers have been killed after they were targeted by an Israeli drone strike near the governmental hospital in the town of Marjayoun.

Medical staff at the hospital were evacuated and operations shut down, it said.

“No one was wounded from the medical staff but we have decided to evacuate temporarily until the security situation becomes clearer,” hospital director Mounes Klakesh said.

Israel has intensified its attacks on Lebanon, launching its heaviest air strikes so far with dozens reportedly killed across the country over the past day.

Al Jazeera condemns the assault on its journalist Laith Jaar by Palestinian Security

Al Jazeera Media Network strongly condemns the assault by a member of the Palestinian Authority’s security on its correspondent, Laith Jaar, in the West Bank while he was covering the Israeli bombardment of the Tulkarem refugee camp. According to Laith’s testimony, security officer Ahmad Ghassan Quzah assaulted him and threatened to shoot him.

The Network also condemns the subsequent detention and arrest of Laith by the national security, while filing a complaint against the security officer who assaulted him. The Network consider this action is part of a systematic incitement campaign against Laith and Al Jazeera’s coverage.

This attack and arrest represent a serious escalation and a clear violation of journalists’ rights, adding to the ongoing systematic targeting of our reporters in the Palestinian territories, particularly following the illegal closure of the Al Jazeera bureau in Ramallah by the Israeli occupation authorities.

Al Jazeera emphasises the need to protect journalists and their right to perform their professional duties without threats or intimidation. Any attack infringing upon this right is intolerable.

Al Jazeera calls on the responsible entities in the Palestinian Authority to immediately release our colleague Laith Jaar, open an urgent and comprehensive investigation into this incident, and hold those responsible for the incitement and attack accountable with the utmost seriousness and transparency.

The Network also stresses the need to take the necessary measures to ensure the safety of journalists and prevent the recurrence of such violations.

Al Jazeera Media Network reaffirms its unwavering commitment to conveying the truth and exposing all violations, and it will not back down from its journalistic responsibilities, regardless of the challenges and pressures.

‘What happened yesterday was a major massacre’

We’ve been reporting on the Israeli air strike that killed 18 people in the occupied West Bank. Israel says it targeted a commander from Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Faisal Salama, an official in the Tulkarem refugee camp, said the attack destroyed a two-story building with many Palestinians gathered in a popular cafe on the lower floor.

“What happened yesterday was a major massacre. They were in pieces,” Salama told Al Jazeera, describing the victims. Most of those inside were killed immediately with 10 others wounded, he said.

“We consider this is an aggression targeting all our people, and we demand an end to this war, an end to the occupation, and that we live in freedom, security and safety like all the peoples of the world,” said Salama.

“This is collective punishment practised by the occupation against our people. Most of those who were martyred yesterday were innocent civilians who were targeted inside their home.”

Sirens sound in southern Israel

For the first time in nearly two months, the Israeli military reports sirens sounding in Gaza border communities in southern Israel.

Meanwhile in the north, firefighters were working to extinguish a forest fire in the Upper Galilee after a rocket from Lebanon fell in the area, according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

Approximately 50 instances of rockets or shrapnel falling have been reported in the past 24 hours in Metula, northern Israel, according to the head of the local council.

Islamic Resistance in Iraq says three projectiles launched at Israeli targets

The umbrella group of Iran-aligned armed forces in Iraq says it launched projectiles against three targets in occupied Golan and Tiberias in Israel.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq added in a statement that its forces used drones at the targets, with the attacks taking place at dawn on Friday. It promised to continue “operations to pound the enemy’s strongholds at an escalating pace.

No place for foreign workers being displaced in Lebanon

_{Migrants in Lebanon}

Israeli attacks force 37 healthcare facilities in Lebanon to close

Israeli military attacks on Lebanon have forced the closing of 37 healthcare facilities, including nine supported by the UN Population Fund, the agency aimed at improving reproductive and maternal health worldwide.

According to the organisation, there are about 11,600 pregnant women among the more than one million people who have been forcibly displaced from Lebanon as a result of Israeli assaults.

The agency distributes dignity kits and provides gender-based violence protection, sexual and reproductive health services, and psychological support in various shelters across Lebanon.

🚨 Attacks on healthcare in Lebanon have shuttered 37 facilities, including 9 supported by @UNFPA.

We remain committed to providing life-saving support to pregnant women & GBV survivors. Civilians are NOT a target! #HumanitarianResponse https://t.co/VPiwpVYEyR pic.twitter.com/jFiFSnwUzS

— UNFPA Arab States (@UNFPA_ASRO) October 4, 2024

Attacks on health workers and facilities in Lebanon reminiscent of Gaza

What we’re hearing is that four paramedics were killed in the Marjayoun hospital. It’s a place I’ve spent a lot of time in before we had to evacuate from there.

A Lebanese medical source told Al Jazeera that they were killed after Israeli fighter jets targeted an ambulance belonging to the Islamic health authority in the vicinity of the hospital. After that attack, the decision was made to shutter the hospital.

That’s 38 medical facilities out of 137 that have now been shuttered across the 120-kilometre (75-mile) border. Most of them were very close to the border areas and the doctors and medical staff there felt that those strikes were coming in too close for them to guarantee to be able to operate safely.

And now, this hospital, which is a major one for this entire area, has shuttered its doors, as well. Once again that word keeps coming up when you talk about southern Lebanon: Gaza.

People are looking at the attacks on hospital infrastructure in Gaza which has been completely decimated and wondering how much time is going to take for that to happen here.

Israel’s defence minister says ‘more surprises’ to come

Speaking from Israel’s northern border, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated that the military operation in Lebanon will continue “until the removal of combat means”.

“We have more surprises in our arsenal,” Gallant said, according to Israeli media reports.

Earlier today, the Israeli military announced that its Thursday attack in Beirut had killed Mohammad Rashid Sakafi, Hezbollah’s head of communications.

Deaths, injuries after Israeli military bombs home in Khan Younis

Israeli fighter jets bombed the Abu Jazar family home in the Maen area in the east of the city in southern Gaza, the Wafa news agency reports. Wafa reports there were deaths and injuries as a result of the attack, but didn’t specify how many.

At least 9 killed in attacks across Gaza since dawn

Our Al Jazeera colleagues report that at least nine people have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip since dawn. The attacks include a raid on the Jaber family home in Deir el-Balah, central Gaza, which killed at least three people and injured more.

Israeli fighter jets have also bombed the Abu Jazar family home in the Maen area in the east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, resulting in an unknown number of deaths and injuries.


_{The Israeli army targeted the Jabir family home in the city of Deir el-Balah}

Israel increasingly seen as ‘a pariah state’ internationally: Analyst

Rami Khouri, a distinguished fellow at the American University of Beirut, said reports that the latest Israeli air strikes on Lebanon’s capital were an attempt to kill Hezbollah’s Hashem Safieddine – a cousin of the group’s late leader Hassan Nasrallah – can be understood as part of Israel’s long history of assassination.

“This has been going on for about 40 or 50 years. The Israelis and even the pre-state Zionists before that were routinely trying to decapitate the movements of resistance,” Khouri told Al Jazeera.

Such violence has “only given birth to a whole ring of resistance groups around Israel” Khouri said, and made it “a pariah state in the world”.

Israel has been “criminalised in front of the courts of the UN and is being increasingly seen negatively by public opinion. This is happening all over the world and it has made Israel the most dangerous place in the world for a Jewish person,” he added.

Israel is now seen as a “runaway killing machine. A massacring machine. A baby-shredding machine all over the Middle East. Killing medics. Killing university professors. Destroying hospitals. It’s completely run amok with its military might,” he continued.

_{Palestinian child Hanan is comforted by her aunt at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on September 8, 2024. Hanan’s family home was bombed in an Israeli strike, during which both of her parents were killed. Hanan lost both of her legs. Her sister lost her right foot in the attack.}

Abuse of Palestinians – Al Jazeera documents suspected Israeli war crimes

Looting, killing and demolition of entire neighbourhoods are just some of the actions Israeli soldiers carry out in Gaza.

Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit has spent months gathering material that reveals Israeli forces are carrying out a range of illegal activities during the war on Gaza – activities that could amount to war crimes.

Al Jazeera’s Richard Sanders reports:

Israeli administrative detention a ‘theatre of justice’: Human rights lawyer

It only takes an order by an Israeli military commander or official to arrest Palestinians under so-called “administrative detention”, allowing suspects to be held without trial or charge, according to human rights lawyer Muhammad Dahleh.

Dahleh, who is based in occupied East Jerusalem, explained that arrested Palestinians under this system have no access to any evidence that can be presented against them.

“If they want to challenge that, the only way is through Israeli courts and only the judges can see the evidence there, with no access given to the lawyer,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Palestinians can be detained for a long period. It’s usually for six months, but it can be extended and some have been administratively detained for years,” he said, adding that some 3,500 are currently held this way.

Dahleh added that Palestinians can sometimes be imprisoned for something the Israelis perceive they may do in the future. He said a lawyer would have nothing to do in an Israeli court if they take up such a case.

“It’s only theatre, there’s no justice in the process and there’s no due process.”