Israel-Hamas Conflict Highlights: Israel continues attacks on Beirut; at least 87 killed in northern Gaza

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Smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo)

According to a CNN report, the director of Israel’s Shin Bet security agency, Ronen Bar, held discussions with Egypt’s newly appointed intelligence chief Hassan Mahmoud Rashad in the capital Cairo on Sunday regarding the stalled hostage negotiations.

The officials stated that the two discussed how to move ahead with the hostage-ceasefire negotiation deal. Egypt has acted as one of the intermediaries between Israel and Hamas, and is currently working alongside USA and other allies o broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

About 200 projectiles fired by Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group entered in Israel on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

In a statement, the military said, "The IDF will continue to defend the state of Israel and its people against the threat posed by the Hezbollah terrorist organization."

Several people are reported to be injured in an Israeli strike a house in the al-Tawbah Mosque area in the Jabalia camp, northern Gaza, as reported by Al Jazeera.

The Hezbollah militant group has claimed that it shot down an Israeli drone after Tel Aviv announced that it is targeting branches of Hezbollah's financial institution.

Hezbollah fighters from the group’s “air defence units…downed an Israeli Hermes 450 drone," said the militant group, as reported by Al Jazeera.

Israel is pushing Palestinians in norther Gaza to "certain death" in its offensive against Hamas militants, who had attacked the country on October 7 last year, said the Palestinian Authority’s Foreign Ministry.

In a statement, the ministry added "The occupation army is forcing residents of northern Gaza to either flee under bombardment or face killing in what resembles a circle of certain death."

The ministry further added, "Genocide is unfolding in northern Gaza in its clearest form – in full view of the world – marked by siege, starvation, forced displacement, destruction of buildings, aerial bombardment, targeting of health centres, and mass killings," reported Al Jazeera.

At least 16 people have been killed and another 59 wounded in the Israeli air strikes on Lebanon on Saturday, the Lebanon’s Health Ministry has said.

According to the official Lebanese administration's figures, since the Israel's offensive started in October 2023, at least 2,464 people have been killed and at least 11,530 wounded in Lebanon.

Hundreds of Beirut residents fled their homes late on Sunday after Israel said it was preparing attacks on sites linked to the financial operations of Lebanon's Hezbollah group within hours and told people to leave those areas immediately.

Soon after the Israeli warning, several blasts were heard and a large fire was seen in Beirut's southern suburbs. There was no immediate information on what caused the explosion, or details of any casualties.

Panicked crowds clogged the streets and caused traffic jams in some parts of Beirut as they tried to get to neighbourhoods thought to be safer, witnesses said. "Residents of Lebanon, the IDF (Israeli military) will begin attacking infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association - get away from it immediately," the military's spokesperson said in a statement on X.

Al-Qard al-Hassan - which the U.S. has said is used by Iran-backed Hezbollah to manage its finances - has more than 30 branches across Lebanon including 15 in densely populated parts of central Beirut and its suburbs. There was no immediate statement from the organisation, Hezbollah or the Lebanese government.

Asked by journalists whether the branches could be considered military targets, a senior Israeli intelligence official said: "The purpose of this strike is to target the ability of Hezbollah economic function both during the war but also afterwards to rebuild and to rearm ...on the day after."

Cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah erupted a year ago when the group began launching rockets in support of Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.At the start of October, Israel launched a ground assault inside Lebanon in an attempt to stabilise the border region for its citizens who had fled rocket attacks in northern Israel.

(Reuters)

As Israel announced that it will target Lebanon based Hezbollah's financial arm in the country, a series of four attacks have been reported in Lebanon, reported Al Jazeera.

Blast was heard and smoke was visible over Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon amid Israel's offensive in the region against Iran backed Hezbollah militant group, reports Reuters witnesses.

The Israeli military has said that it will target the financial arms of Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group in a targeted strike at the particular sites in the upcoming hours and the residents of Lebanon have been urged to vacate the area surrounding those region, the Israeli chief military spokesperson said on Sunday.

"We will attack a number of targets in the coming hours," spokesperson Daniel Hagari told a news briefing, according to news agency Reuters.

The United Nations peacekeeping force, UNIFIL ( United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon), has said that the Israeli army's bulldozer demolished the watchtower and fence surrounding the United Nations site in southern Lebanon on Sunday.

US House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday there was an investigation underway into the leak of classified US intelligence documents related to Israel's preparations for an attack on Iran.

Speaking to CNN, Johnson said: "There's a classified-level briefing ... we are following it closely." He did not provide details on the briefing.

(With inputs from Reuters)

Three Lebanese soldiers were killed in an Israeli strike on an army vehicle in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese military said in a statement on a Sunday, as quoted by Reuters news agency.

UN Special Coordinator Tor Wennesland has condemned the Israeli air strikes in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya.

"The nightmare in Gaza is intensifying. Horrifying scenes are unfolding in the northern Strip amidst conflict, relentless Israeli strikes and an ever-worsening humanitarian crisis," he said in a post on X.

Wennesland called for an immediate halt to attacks on civilians and stressed the need to protect displaced Palestinians.

“I condemn the continuing attacks on civilians. Hostages must be freed, displacement of Palestinians must cease, & civilians must be protected,” he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with former US President Donald Trump, the prime minister's office said on Sunday.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated what he has also said publicly: Israel takes into account the issues the US administration raises, but in the end, will make its decisions based on its national interests," it said.

(Reuters)

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) said about 70 projectiles were detected from Lebanon into Israel within minutes on Sunday.

"Some of them were intercepted by the Air Force, a number of crashes were detected in the area," the IAF said in a post on X.

"Following the sirens that sounded between 11:09 and 11:12 am in the Western Galilee and Upper Galilee areas, approximately 70 projectiles were identified crossing from Lebanon," the military added.

At least 87 people were killed or went missing under the rubble after an Israeli attack on Saturday on northern Gaza's town of Beit Lahiya, the Gaza health ministry said on Sunday, as quoted by Reuters news agency.

More than 40 others were injured, it added. The Israeli military said they were checking the report.

At least 42,603 Palestinians have been killed and 99,795 others wounded in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to Gaza health ministry.

In a statement on Sunday, the Israeli military said its fighter jets have killed three Hezbollah commanders, including Alhaj Abbas Salameh, a senior figure in the group's southern command, Radja Abbas Awache, a communications expert, and Ahmad Ali Hussein, who it said was responsible for strategic weapons development. (Reuters)

A day after striking Hezbollah’s arms facilities in southern Beirut, Israeli military Sunday said that it has attacked the Lebanese group’s intelligence headquarters and an underground workshop for the production of weapons in Beirut, news agency Reuters reported.

Days after Gaza-based Hamas militant group’s leader and the mastermind behind the October 7 attack on Israel, Yahya Sinwar, was killed by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), a video showing him and his family entering an underground tunnel in Gaza, hours before the October 7 attack took place, was released by the IDF on Saturday.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), IDF spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari, called the leader’s killing a “result of a year of operational and intelligence efforts.”

“Yahya Sinwar spent years planning the October 7 attack. Each step was planned to maximise harm to Israeli and Gazan civilians, and to minimise harm to himself and other terrorists,” Hagari claimed in the video, adding that Sinwar “always prioritised himself, his money, and Hamas terrorists over the people of Gaza.”

Read more here.

The final glimpse of Hamas’ leader Yahya Sinwar was rough and raw, showing him wounded and cornered as he sat in a bombed-out Palestinian home and faced down the Israeli drone filming him, hurling a stick at it, news agency AP reported.

For Israel, the scene was one of victory, showing Sinwar, the architect of October 7 attack, "broken and defeated".

Clips from the released drone footage went viral on social media, accompanied by quotes from Sinwar's speeches in which he declared that he would rather die on the battlefield.

An oil painting of a masked Sinwar sitting proudly on an armchair was widely shared, apparently inspired by the last image of him alive. (AP)

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari, taking to X (formerly Twitter), asserted that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was the result of a year of operational and intelligence efforts.

"Killing Sinwar is the result of a year of operational and intelligence efforts to bring him and other Hamas leaders to justice. Sinwar has been eliminated, but our mission is not over," he said as IDF shared a video clip claiming that he had hid in an underground tunnel with his family a year ago.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have expressed doubts over Hamas' claim of 73 deaths in the latest strikes in north Gaza, labelling the figure "exaggerated," the Times of Israel reported.

The US is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel's plans to attack Iran, three US officials told The Associated Press. A fourth US official said the documents appear to be legitimate.

The documents are attributed to the US Geospatial Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency and note that Israel continues to move military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran's blistering ballistic missile attack on October. 1. They were sharable within the “Five Eyes,” which are the US, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, according to AP.

The investigation is also examining how the documents were obtained — including whether it was an intentional leak by a member of the US intelligence community or obtained by another method, like a hack — and whether any other intelligence information was compromised, the official told AP.

As part of that investigation, officials are working to determine who had access to the documents before they were posted, the official told AP.

The documents emerged as the US has urged Israel to take advantage of its elimination of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and press for a ceasefire in Gaza, and has likewise urgently cautioned Israel not to further expand military operations in the north in Lebanon and risk a wider regional war. However, Israel's leadership has repeatedly stressed it will not let Iran's missile attack go unanswered.

In a statement, the Pentagon said it was aware of the reports of the documents but did not have further comment. (AP)

After a drone hit Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence in Caesarea on Saturday, Israeli forces struck Hezbollah arms facilities in southern Beirut, news agency Reuters reported.

Further, Israeli strikes on several houses in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya has killed at least 73 people and wounded dozens, according to Hamas media.

This comes after Netanyahu, in a statement referring to drone attacks, warned: “I say to Iran and its proxies in its axis of evil: Anyone who tries to harm Israel’s citizens will pay a heavy price.” (Reuters)

The Israeli military is checking reports of casualties from an airstrike in northern Gaza, an Israeli official said on Saturday, after the Hamas media office said at least 73 people had been killed in Beit Lahiya town.

The official said that a preliminary examination suggested that the numbers published by the Hamas media office were exaggerated and did not match the information available to the Israeli military. (Reuters)

Joyce Msuya, UN Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, has condemned the devastating situation in northern Gaza, describing the experiences of Palestinians as "unspeakable horrors" due to Israel's siege . This dire assessment comes amid reports of mass graves, destroyed infrastructure, and a worsening humanitarian crisis.

In a joint statement released on Saturday, G7 defence ministers voiced their concerns over Israel’s recent attacks on UNIFIL in Lebanon. The group, which has been meeting in Naples, Italy, said:

"We are concerned by the latest events in Lebanon and the risk of further escalation. We express concern over all threats to UNIFIL’s security. The protection of peacekeepers is incumbent upon all parties to a conflict. We also reaffirm the importance of supporting UNIFIL and the Lebanese Armed Forces in their role of ensuring the stability and security of Lebanon."

The G7 also condemned the October 7 attacks carried out by Hamas, while urging for a ceasefire in Gaza. The statement added: “We are united in supporting the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and a significant and sustained increase in the flow of humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza, alongside a sustainable pathway to a two-state solution.”

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin urged Israel to reduce the intensity of its strikes around Beirut, Lebanon’s capital, citing the high number of civilian casualties.

Speaking at a G7 defence meeting in Naples on Saturday, Austin said, “The number of civilian casualties has been far too high. We’d like to see Israel scale back on some of the strikes it’s taking, especially in and around Beirut, and transition towards negotiations that will allow civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes.”

Israel has been targeting southern Beirut for three weeks, prompting tens of thousands to flee the area, once home to Hezbollah offices and underground installations.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday to discuss adjustments to the posture of US forces, including the recent deployment of an anti-missile system aimed at bolstering Israel’s defenses against regional threats, according to a Pentagon statement.

Austin also expressed relief that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was safe following reports of a drone attack targeting his holiday home in Caesarea, the Pentagon added.

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu responding to the reported attack said, “The attempt by Iran’s proxy Hezbollah to assassinate me and my wife today was a grave mistake.”

Netanyahu vowed that Iran and its proxies will “pay a heavy price,” adding that Israel will continue to “eliminate the terrorists and those who dispatch them.”

Netanyahu’s statement comes after reports emerged of his house in northern Israel being targeted on Saturday. The prime minister and his wife Sara were not home at the time. Israeli media later published a video of the prime minister walking in a park.

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to visit Israel on Tuesday as part of a Middle East tour, Axios reporter

Barak Ravid wrote on social media platform X citing Israeli officials, Reuters news agency reported.

The Israeli military conducted strikes on several Hezbollah weapons storage facilities and an intelligence headquarters command centre in Beirut's southern suburbs, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said on Saturday.

Israeli strikes pummelled Beirut's southern suburbs on Saturday as Lebanese armed group Hezbollah fired salvos of rockets at northern Israel, with one drone directed at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's holiday home, his spokesman said.

The volleys from the Iran-backed Lebanese group came as health officials in Gaza, where Israel has been battling Palestinian militant group Hamas for more than a year, said Israeli strikes had killed more than 30 people across the territory.

(AP)

At least 20,000 people fled Jabalia on Friday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said today.

"People lost everything. They need everything including food, water, blankets, and mattresses: the basic of the basic," UNRWA's commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini says in a post on X.

He also said there's a critical shortage of fuel and medical supplies in the area's remaining hospitals. “It’s time to end the war and show political will," he added.

Israeli military strikes killed at least 32 people across the Gaza Strip on Saturday, Palestinian health officials said, as forces tightened a siege around hospitals in Jabalia in the north of the enclave.

In the central Gaza Strip camp of Al-Maghzai, an Israeli strike on a house killed 11 people, while another strike at the nearby camp of Nuseirat killed four others.

Five other people were killed in two separate strikes in the south Gaza cities of Khan Younis and Rafah, medics said, while seven Palestinians were killed in the Shati camp in the northern Gaza Strip.

"IDF troops are currently operating in the Jabalia area against Hamas terrorist infrastructure and terrorists. We are unaware of the incident," the Israeli military said.

(Reuters)

A man was killed by shrapnel near the port city of Acre on Saturday after a barrage of rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel, the country's emergency services said.

“Paramedics have pronounced the death of a man, around 50 years old, who was struck by shrapnel while sitting in his vehicle,” the Magen David Adom emergency service said in a statement, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The European Union's foreign policy chief said on Saturday a ceasefire was a priority in the Middle East and the killing of Hamas leader Yaya Sinwar by Israeli forces could increase the chances of achieving it.

"After the killing of Sinwar a new perspective is open and we have to use it to reach a ceasefire, a release the remaining (Israeli) hostages and to look for a political perspective," Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, said at a meeting of G7 defence ministers in Naples, Reuters news agency reported.

He also said the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, could be strengthened, having come under fire in clashes between Israel and its Lebanese enemy Hezbollah.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei on Saturday said the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar will not halt the “Axis of Resistance” and that Hamas “will remain alive.”

"His loss is undoubtedly painful for the Axis of Resistance, but this front did not cease advancing with the martyrdom of prominent figures," Khamenei said in a statement, Reuters news agency reported.

The "Axis of Resistance," supported by Iran over the years, includes Hamas, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shi'ite groups in Iraq and Syria. These groups describe themselves as the resistance against Israel and US influence in the Middle East.

At least 42,519 Palestinians have been killed and 99,637 others wounded in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

Israel's military says that 55 rockets have been launched from Lebanon towards Haifa and other northern Israeli cities.

In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) added that some were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome air defence system.

"Approximately 55 projectiles have been launched by Hezbollah toward Haifa and northern Israel this morning, causing hundreds of thousands of Israelis to spend their weekend running to shelter," the IDF said in a post on X.

Along with the drone that was launched towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's private residence in Caesarea, two more drones that crossed into Israeli territory were intercepted, the military told news agency Reuters.

According to the report, there were no casualties reported, according to the Israeli ambulance service and police said explosions had been heard in Caesarea, coastal town where Netanyahu has a holiday home.

The drone attack was not immediately claimed by the Lebanese Iran-backed group Hezbollah, which has been trading fire with Israel since last October, or any other militant group. (Reuters)

A drone was launched towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence in Caesarea on Saturday, news agency Reuters reported, adding that the PM was not present at his residence during the attack.

No casualties were reported, according to Reuters.

This comes a day after Netanyahu said that war could end immediately if Hamas returns hostages and ceases its armed actions, which Hamas refused to agree with as its leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli forces escalating the tensions.

At least 11 people were killed in Israeli strike on a home in central Gaza's Al Maghazi refugee camp, the Palestinian official news agency WAFA said on Saturday, adding that there are still missing people under the rubble, news agency Reuters reported.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, responding to comments by US President Joe Biden, said on Saturday anyone who knows "how and when Israel will attack Iran" should be held accountable.

Araqchi said on X: "Anybody with knowledge or understanding of 'how and when Israel was going to attack Iran', and/or providing the means and backing for such folly, should logically be held accountable for any possible causality."

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Saturday said that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar will not halt the "Axis of Resistance" and that Hamas would live on, news agency Reuters reported.

"His loss is undoubtedly painful for the Axis of Resistance, but this front did not cease advancing with the martyrdom of prominent figures," Khamenei said in a statement. "Hamas is alive and will remain alive."

Talking about Yahya Sinwar, he said: "He was a shining face of resistance and struggle. With a steely resolve, he stood against the oppressive and aggressive enemy. With wisdom and courage, he dealt them the irreparable blow of October 7 that has been recorded in the history of this region. Then, with honor and pride, he ascended to the heavens of the martyrs."

The "Axis of Resistance", built up with years of Iranian support, includes Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah group, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shi'ite groups in Iraq and Syria. The groups describe themselves as the resistance to Israel and U.S. influence in the Middle East.

"As always, we will remain by the side of the sincere fighters and combatants, by God's grace and help," Khamenei said. (Reuters)

Freedom of expression has been threatened more seriously in Gaza than in any recent conflict, with journalists targeted in the war-torn territory and Palestinian supporters targeted in many countries, a United Nations expert said on Friday, news agency AP reported.

“The banning of Al Jazeera, the tightening of censorship within Israel and in the occupied territories, seem to indicate a strategy of the Israeli authorities to silence critical journalism and obstruct the documentation of possible international crimes,” she said.

Khan also sharply criticized the “discrimination and double standards” that have seen restrictions and suppression of pro-Palestinian protests and speech. She cited bans in Germany and other European countries, protests that were “crushed harshly” on US college campuses, and Palestinian national symbols and slogans prohibited and even criminalized in some countries, AP report quoted.

The UN special rapporteur also pointed, according to the report, to “the silencing and sidelining of dissenting voices in academia and the arts,” with some of the best academic institutions in the world failing to protect all members of their community, “whether Jewish, Palestinian, Israeli, Arab, Muslim, or otherwise.”

She said attacks on the media “are an attack on the right to information of people around the world who want to know what is happening there.” Khan said she has called on the UN General Assembly and Security Council to take measures to strengthen the protection of journalists “as essential civilian workers.” “ Journalism should be seen as essential as humanitarian work,” she said. (AP/PTI)

Israeli troops are pushing through southern Lebanon using tanks and engineering equipment, and air and ground forces have struck thousands of targets in the area since the invasion began, news agency AP reported.

The military recently said, AP quoted, that it found one cross-border tunnel that stretched just a few meters into Israel but did not have an opening. Israel also, according to the report, exposed a tunnel shaft that was located about 100 meters (yards) from a UN peacekeepers ' post, although it wasn't clear what the precise purpose of that tunnel was.

Israel said the tunnels are stocked with supplies and weapons and are outfitted with lighting, ventilation and sometimes plumbing, indicating they could be used for long stays. It said it has arrested several Hezbollah fighters hiding inside, including three on Tuesday who were said to have been found armed. The Israeli military official said many Hezbollah fighters appear to have withdrawn from the area.

Lebanese military expert, Naji Malaeb, a retired brigadier general, said he assessed that Hezbollah's tunnels were preventing Israel from making major gains. He compared that achievement to the war in Gaza, where Hamas has used its tunnels to bedevil Israeli forces and stage insurgency-like attacks. (AP)

Israeli forces are now focused on dismantling tunnels and other hideouts belonging to Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, news agency AP reported.

The militant group has turned to underground tunnels as a way to elude Israeli drones and jets. Experts say Hezbollah's tunnels are not limited to the south.

According to AP, Koulouriotis said tunnels stretch under the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah's command and control are located and where it keeps a stockpile of strategic missiles. She said the group also maintains tunnels along the border with Syria, which it uses to smuggle weapons and other supplies from Iran into Lebanon.

Southern Lebanon is where Hezbollah maintains tunnels to store missiles — and from where it can launch them, Koulouriotis said. Some of the more than 50 Israelis killed by Hezbollah over the past year were hit by anti-tank missiles.

An Israeli military official said that using prior intelligence, Israel had found “hundreds and hundreds and hundreds” of underground positions, many of which could hold about ten fighters and were stocked with rations. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military rules, said troops were blowing up the tunnels found or using cement to make them unusable. (AP)

The killing of Yahya Sinwar by Israel on Thursday might well be the most significant development in the year-long war in Gaza.

Sinwar had been de facto chief of Hamas since 2017, and its man on the ground in Gaza. He was also in-charge of Hamas’s military operations, and the alleged mastermind of the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks on Israel.

Eliminating Sinwar had been a top priority for Israel. How will his killing impact the war in Gaza? We explain.

Chief pathologist Dr. Chen Kugel who autopsied the body of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar told CNN that he was killed by a gunshot wound to the head, even though he suffered other injuries from a tank shell or missile. 

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on Thursday evening announced that Sinwar— who led the October 7 attacks that triggered the war in Gaza — was killed by Israeli forces in Rafah escalating the Israel-Gaza war.

The Israeli military is still working to learn all of the details of the event, an IDF spokesperson told CNN, on Kugel’s findings.

At least 33 people were killed and 85 wounded in Israeli strikes on Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza on Friday, with children among those killed, according to medics and the Palestinian official news agency WAFA.

The death toll may rise as some people are believed to be trapped under rubble. Israeli forces have been operating in Jabalia for two weeks, targeting Hamas militants and infrastructure, following the October 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and took 250 hostages.

Residents report widespread destruction, with dozens of houses destroyed daily, and Israeli tanks reaching the heart of the camp. The Gaza health ministry reports at least 39 Palestinians killed across Gaza on Friday, with 20 in Jabalia. Health officials appeal for immediate hospital supplies, food, and fuel for overwhelmed northern Gaza hospitals .

(with inputs from Reuters)

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stated on Friday that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar could pave the way for easier prospects of peace in Gaza. "I think it makes it easier," Trump said to reporters upon arriving in Detroit for campaign events.

He also mentioned his plans to speak with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu soon, expressing his support for the Israeli leader while criticising President Joe Biden's approach. "He's doing a good job," Trump said of Netanyahu, before adding, "Biden is trying to hold him back... and he probably should be doing the opposite actually."

Trump noted that Netanyahu had reached out to him, and that he plans to speak with him in the near future.

A senior Hamas official has confirmed to the BBC that the group will soon meet to select a new leader following the death of Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by Israeli forces. The official stated that the selection process would follow the group's established standards and institutional regulations.

Despite Sinwar's death, Hamas's conditions for ending the war and agreeing to a prisoner exchange remain unchanged. These include a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, halting the war, allowing aid access, and initiating reconstruction efforts.

Experts cited by Reuters suggest that Hamas will likely appoint a new leader based outside Gaza. Meanwhile, Sinwar's brother, Mohammed Sinwar, is expected to take on a more prominent role in directing the conflict against Israel within Gaza.

Hezbollah claimed responsibility for targeting the northern Israeli city of Haifa and nearby areas with a barrage of rockets on Friday. The Iran-backed group announced in a statement that its fighters launched "a salvo of rockets" aimed at Haifa.

One of the rocket salvos was dedicated to the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, who was reportedly killed in an Israeli strike last month.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that Hezbollah had fired 75 projectiles from Lebanon into Israel, adding that it intercepted three rockets directed at the Haifa bay area.

Benjamin Netanyahu is set to convene a special meeting with Israeli government ministers to discuss hostage negotiations in light of the recent killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Details regarding the timing of the meeting and the specific agenda remain unclear, according to AP reports.

Following the announcement of Sinwar’s death on Thursday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv, urging the government to leverage his killing as an opportunity to restart discussions aimed at securing the release of hostages still held in Gaza.

Compromises between Israel and Iran are possible but will be difficult to achieve, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, commenting on concerns about a possible war between Israel and Iran.

Russia is ready to participate in any talks between the two sides if they are interested, he added.

Israel estimated Lebanese Hezbollah's death toll at around 1,500 men, its chief of the general staff Herzi Halevi said in an official statement on Friday.

"There is great damage, an entire chain of command is being wiped out, Hezbollah is hiding its fatalities, it is hiding dead commanders. We estimate that we are at around 1,500 Hezbollah operatives killed and our estimates are conservative, I assume there are more we don't know of, (killed) in many airstrikes," Halevi told ground troops in southern Lebanon, as quoted by Reuters news agency.

At least 42,500 Palestinians were killed and 99,546 were wounded in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since October 7, Gaza's health ministry said in a statement on Friday.

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was the chief obstacle to securing a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict and his killing by Israel's defense force creates an "inflection point" that could accelerate talks to wind down the war, White House spokesperson John Kirby said.

Sinwar was the mastermind of the group's cross-border raids on Oct. 7, 2023, which became the deadliest day in Israel's history and triggered the Gaza war. His killing marks a huge success for Israel and a pivotal event in the yearlong conflict.

"We believe, continue to believe, that finding an end to the war is critical, and we also believe that Mr. Sinwar's death ... can provide an inflection point to getting there," Kirby said.

Despite the US optimism, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised on Friday to press on with Israel's wars in Gaza and Lebanon, suggesting the Sinwar killing will do little to halt the fighting, at least in the short term.

(Reuters)

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was the chief obstacle to securing a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict and his killing by Israel's defense force creates an "inflection point" that could accelerate talks to wind down the war, White House spokesperson John Kirby said.

Sinwar was the architect of the group's cross-border raids in 2023 which became the deadliest day in Israel's history.

Israeli hostages in Gaza will not return until "the aggression" on the besieged Palestinian enclave stops and Israeli forces withdraw, Khalil Al-Hayya, deputy Gaza Hamas chief and the group's chief negotiator, said on Friday, as quoted by news agency Reuters.

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's killing opens a major opportunity to negotiate a lasting ceasefire, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters on Friday, after attending a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Brussels.

He added that US Forces in the Middle East stand ready to support Israel's defence.

"Sinwar's death also provides an extraordinary opportunity to achieve a lasting ceasefire, to end this awful war, and to rush humanitarian aid into Gaza", he said, as quoted by the Reuters news agency.

The Israeli military said on Friday it is calling up an additional reserve brigade for operational missions in northern Israel, according to a military statement.

In a post on X, the IDF said, "In accordance with the assessment of the situation, it was decided to recruit an additional reserve brigade for the operational tasks in the northern sector."

The IDF added, "Its mobilization will allow the continuation of the fighting effort against the terrorist organization Hezbollah and the achievement of the goals of the war, including the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes."

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed hope on Friday that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar would open the door to a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages.

He spoke in Berlin alongside US President Joe Biden, whose visit Scholz described as a strong signal of transatlantic unity. Scholz promised strong support to Ukraine but stressed that NATO must not become a party to the war against Russia.

A senior Hamas official said that the group ‘cannot be defeated’ simply by eliminating its leaders after the Israeli military reported Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's death in Gaza, news agency Agence France-Presse reported.

“Hamas is a liberation movement led by people looking for freedom and dignity, and this cannot be eliminated,” Basem Naim, senior member of Hamas’s political bureau, said, as quoted by AFP.

He added, "It seems that Israel believes that killing our leaders means the end of our movement and the struggle of the Palestinian people. Hamas each time became stronger and more popular, and these leaders became icons for future generations to continue the journey towards a free Palestine."

Naim did not confirm Sinwar's death. Sinwar's killing comes after the death of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed by an Israeli airstrike in Tehran in July.

The United Nations humanitarian office on Friday denounced Israel's use of what it described as "war-like" tactics against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, saying nine Palestinians had been killed there in a week.

"Israeli forces have been using lethal, war-like tactics in the West Bank, raising serious concerns over excessive use of force and deepening people's humanitarian needs," spokesperson Jens Laerke told reporters at a Geneva press briefing, saying that nine people had been killed between Oct. 8-14, including one child.

Laerke added that Israeli forces had accused most of those killed of being involved in attacking Israelis.

Since October 7, 2023, more than 750 people have been killed in the occupied West Bank with more than 6,250 injured, and at least 11,200 Palestinians imprisoned, according to an Al Jazeera report.

(With inputs from Reuters)

The conflict between Israel and Palestine began just under a century ago, but the significance of the land precedes even Biblical times. The area in question covers a tiny swathe of the Southern Levant, bordering Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. With perpetually shifting borders, accusations of segregation, and claims of historical significance, the region has served as a fierce battleground between Jews, Arabs, and Palestinians, backed by a rotating cast of states including the UK, America, France, Iran, and Turkey.

While 165 member states of the United Nations refer to the region as Israel, the remaining 30 do not recognise Israeli statehood and refer to the land as Palestine. Of the states that recognise Israel, all accept that the Jewish settlements and segregationist policies constitute a form of forced occupation.

At present, most of the West Bank is administered by Israel although approximately 42 per cent of it is under various degrees of autonomous rule by the Palestinian Authority. The Gaza Strip, a 41-kilometre-long and 10-kilometre-wide strip of land located between Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, is currently under the control of Hamas which is designated as a terrorist organisation by the United States and European Union.

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IDF in a post on X stated that they engaged in a counter-terrorism operation after identifying terrorists who crossed from Jordan into Israel south of the Dead Sea.

Upon arrival at the location, IDF troops neutralized two terrorists who opened fire on them. The area is currently under surveillance as IDF forces continue to scan for any additional threats.

IDF

A recent update from the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) reported that a launch was detected crossing into Israel from Lebanon, landing in an open area in northern Israel without triggering any alerts. This incident follows an earlier alert activated in Rosh Hankara at 09:41, during which the Air Force successfully intercepted a suspicious aerial target that had entered Israeli airspace from Lebanon.

This development comes amid heightened tensions, with reports indicating that 15 rockets were allegedly fired from Lebanon toward northern Israel, leading to military actions against Hezbollah positions in the region

The Indian Express

Yahya Sinwar was born in the Khan Younis refugee camp in south Gaza in 1962, back when the region was under Egyptian control. His parents were expelled from Ashkelon by Zionist forces in 1948 during the Palestinian Nakba (“catastrophe”), which saw mass-scale ethnic cleansing of Arabs amidst the formation of Israel.

Sinwar was active in the Muslim Brotherhood in the early 1980s and was arrested for protesting Israeli occupation while a college student at the Islamic University in Gaza. He is credited with founding Hamas’s Internal Security Force Al Majd, responsible for managing internal security matters, investigating — and allegedly brutally eliminating — suspected Israeli agents and Palestinian collaborators and tracking down Israeli intelligence and security services officers.

Sinwar is also credited with founding the fearsome al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, and the largest militia operating in Gaza prior to last year’s October 7 attacks.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz criticised UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for remaining silent following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, and accuses him of promoting an “extreme anti-Israel and anti-Jewish agenda.”

In a post on X Katz said, Guterres “did not welcome the elimination of arch-terrorist Yahya Sinwar, just as he refused to declare Hamas a terrorist organization after the October 7th massacre,”

He further added that the foreign ministry will “continue to designate him as a persona non grata and bar his entry into Israel.”

The Israel Police and Shin Bet on Friday stated that a resident of East Jerusalem has been arrested after he was found to be planning a terror attack against families of the hostages, Times of Israel reported.

In a joint statement, the police said that the suspect, a 22-year-old from Sheikh Jarrah, had been planning to attack civilians at one of the weekly Tel Aviv rallies in support of the hostages as an act of revenge for the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

According to the security forces, the suspect had attempted to make contact with Hamas operatives in the West Bank and with the Jenin Brigades terror group to assist him with planning the attack and acquiring the necessary weapons.

The investigation into the suspect was launched last month by the Shin Bet and Israel Police Jerusalem division and an indictment is expected later today.

(With Times of Israel inputs)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene a special security meeting with the participation of government ministers and security officials at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv on Fridayfollowing the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, quoting Hebrew media reports, Times of Israel reported.

The meeting will focus on the possibility of progress in hostage deal negotiations in light of his death, reports add.

In a raw footage, being referred to as the last moments of Sinwar before he was eliminated, an injured Sinwar is seen sitting alone on a couch in the destroyed building. The video is posted by Lt Col Nadav Shoshani, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson, on X.

(@LTC_Shoshani)

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced that the Hezbollah commander of the A-Taiba compound Muhammad Hossein Ramal was targeted in a recent airstrike by the Israeli military.

In a post on X, IDF said "In the territory of Lebanon, an Air Force aircraft directed by the 98th Division attacked the terrorist Muhammad Hossein Ramal, the commander of the A-Taiba compound in the terrorist organization Hezbollah. Muhammad al-Hakawin indicates many terrorist attacks against the State of Israel and the IDF forces in the field"

Ramal is responsible for planning and carrying out terror activities against Israel.

The military says that troops of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF)’s Givati Brigade joined the 162nd Division in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza overnight as part of the renewed ground operation, Times of Israel reported.

In a post on X, said, "During the night, the combat team of the Givati ​​Brigade joined the expansion of the activities of Division 162 in the Jabaliya area. During the last day, the forces of the division and the air force planes eliminated dozens of terrorists in incidents and airstrikes, and destroyed terrorist infrastructures in the region"

It says that dozens of terror operatives were eliminated in fighting and airstrikes across northern Gaza over the last day, while in central Gaza, troops of the 252nd Division targeted a building that had been used by Hamas operatives.

IDF in the post further added, "In the center of the Gaza Strip, forces of Division 252 attacked a military building from which terrorists were operating during the last day. During the last day, the Air Force attacked about 150 targets in Gaza, in the depths of Lebanon and in aid of maneuvering, including munitions warehouses, launch shafts, sniping and observation positions, and terrorists in the area."

(With Times of Israel inputs)

Israel's military has mandated evacuations in multiple villages, including Nabatieh and others in the Bekaa Valley, citing ongoing airstrikes and ground incursions. These warnings have affected approximately 1.2 million people since the onset of intensified hostilities, the official news agency of the government of Lebanon National News Agency (NNA) reported.

Despite Israeli claims of territorial gains, Hezbollah has denied that any villages have fallen under Israeli control. They assert that their fighters are actively engaging Israeli forces to counter airstrikes and ground assaults. Hezbollah's MP Hassan Fadlallah emphasised that the resistance is well-prepared to confront Israeli advances and criticised Israel's "scorched earth" tactics aimed at establishing a buffer zone, NNA reported quoting sources and Lebanese media.

(With NNA inputs)

The Israeli warnings to evacuate large areas in Mount Lebanon, its south and east have allegedly confused the Lebanese arena, in a measure launched by the Israeli forces, coinciding with the escalation of the aerial bombardment, which accompanied Israeli attempts to penetrate the border area by land. However, Hezbollah denied that the Israeli forces had taken control of any village, “despite the massive raids,” stressing that “the resistance on the ground is assessing how to confront in the field.”, quoting the National - Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, the official news agency of the government of Lebanon National News Agency (NNA) reported.

The Israeli army opened a new phase of issuing evacuation warnings, targeting areas in the south and the Bekaa, eastern Lebanon, and the town of Wardaniyeh on the Chouf coast in southern Mount Lebanon, followed by air strikes on targets identified by the army.

These warnings allegedly caused confusion and the areas to which the displaced people had taken refuge, as they were forced to evacuate those areas in a hurry, which was documented by photos that spread on social media, after an evacuation request was issued in the Wardaniya area.

(With NNA inputs)

The Israeli military on Friday says that it killed the commander of Hezbollah’s Taybeh compound Mohammad Hussein Ramal in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, Times of Israel reported.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) says Ramal was responsible for planning and carrying out terror activities against Israel and was killed in the airstrike.

Meanwhile, 15 rockets have been allegedly fired from Lebanon at northern Israel, quoting Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Times of Israel report.

At the same time, troops of the 7th Armored Brigade located and destroyed several rocket launchers primed for launch toward northern Israel, quoting the military, Times of Israel reported.

Following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah stated that it is moving towards a “transition to a new and escalating phase in the confrontation with Israel”.

Meanwhile, 15 rockets have been allegedly fired from Lebanon at northern Israel, quoting Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Times of Israel report.

The military added that Israeli Air Force intercepted an unmanned aerial vehicle off the coast overnight. As per the IDF’s protocols, no sirens were sounded during the incident, as per Times of Israel.

There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage as a result of the rocket fire.