Israel Hezbollah War Highlights: Israel targets border villages in southern Lebanon

An Israeli strike in Lebanon early on Tuesday targeted Mounir Maqdah, commander of the Lebanese branch of the Palestinian Fatah movement's military wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, according to two Palestinian security officials.

Maqdah's fate was unknown.

The strike hit a building in the crowded Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the southern city of Sidon, the sources said.

It marked the first strike on the camp, largest of several Palestinian camps in Lebanon, since cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel broke out nearly a year ago.

(Reuters)

Smoke rises over Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Sin El Fil, Lebanon, October 1, 2024. (REUTERS)

The United Kingdom is chartering a commercial flight for its nationals stuck in war torn Lebanon and who want to leave the country, the UK government announced on social media.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom said in a post on X, “The UK government is chartering a flight to help British nationals who want to leave Lebanon. If you are a British national in Lebanon, you should register your presence to receive the latest updates.”

According to BBC, the UK government will pay to charter the flight, which will depart from Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, but British nationals will be expected to pay a fee of £350 per seat.

According to media reports, a loud explosion was heard in the southern part of Lebanon’s capital Beirut amid Israel Defense Forces ordered the residents to evacuate three areas in southern Beirut "immediately".

As per the BBC’s ground reporters in Beirut, three long boom rumbling kind of noises of explosion have been heard till now. The IDF has also started its ground incursion of the southern Lebanon region.

The Israeli military has started targeted ground raids in southern Lebanon against Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.

The Israel Defense Forces shared the development on X and said, “The IDF began limited, localized, and targeted ground raids based on precise intelligence against Hezbollah terrorist targets and infrastructure in southern Lebanon. These targets are located in villages close to the border and pose an immediate threat to Israeli communities in northern Israel.”

The plan for a temporary ceasefire by the United States led allies has fallen flat as Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu has clearly stated his plans to counter Iran’s ‘axis of resistance’.

In a statement issued by the Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group, it said that it targeted Israeli troop movements across from Lebanese border towns, news agency Reuters reported.

The Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian visited Iran-backed Hezbollah’s office in Tehran “to pay tribute” to the militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah who was killed in an air strike by Israeli forces.

Israel has reportedly suggested to its army that the IDF will be going ahead with a possible ground incursion which will be limited but targeting Hezbollah’s military and other infrastructure.

Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed that Hezbollah leader Nasrallah’s death “will not be in vain,” according to Arab News.

The UN peacekeepers in Lebanon have been unable to patrol the border areas due to heavy air strikes and artillery fire from Israeli forces and Beirut based Hezbollah militant group.

Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said that 10,000 UN peacekeeping forces remain in position in Lebanon but they are unable to patrol the areas due to "the intensity of the rockets going back and forth.”

Dujarric says some civilian staff "have been moved north" as a precaution and "we're looking at the situation hour by hour".

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has been stationed in Lebanon since 1978, according to BBC.

Amid reports of a possible Israeli ground incursion into Lebanon to attack the Hezbollah militant group, the Israeli Defense Forces have ordered the citizens for an “immediate” evacuation of three areas in southern Beirut.

In a social media post, IDF's Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee said, “You are located near interests and facilities belonging to the terrorist Hezbollah, and therefore the IDF will act against them forcefully.”

IDF’s Adraee further added “For your safety and the safety of your family, you must evacuate the buildings immediately, starting at a distance of no less than 500 meters.”

Israel has reportedly told the United States that it plans to launch a limited ground incursion into Lebanon to target the Hezbollah militant group, according to BBC.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah’s deputy leader has said that the militant group is ready for the Israeli ground offensive as Tel Aviv continues to strike Lebanon.

Israel's Defence Minister Yaov Gallant earlier said the Israeli army was preparing for a ground incursion into southern Lebanon.

Israeli forces targeted Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group’s top commander Eid Hassan Nashar in airstrikes and killed him. According to Israel Defense Forces, “Eid was a veteran commander in Hezbollah and served a significant role in the unit's day-to-day operations.”

“In the past, he served as the Commander of the Surface-to-Surface Rocket Unit and Deputy Commander of the Badr Unit. Additionally, the commander, deputy commander and other commanders of Hezbollah's Precision Missile Unit were eliminated. Just last week, this unit was responsible for firing towards central Israel,” the IDF stated in a post on X.

The Israeli offensive also targeted the infrastructure of Hezbollah in Lebanon and destroyed a missile depot, located near the Beirut airport, according to news agency ANI.

Iran’s foreign ministry has said that the country will not deploy forces in Gaza or Lebanon to counter Israel, as Tel Aviv has been targeting its allies in the Middle East region.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani said, “There is no need to send extra or volunteer forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran and that Lebanon and fighters in the Palestinian territories “have the capability and strength to defend themselves against the aggression.”

An Israeli airstrike in Lebanon’s capital Beirut killed Hezbollah militant group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah. Israel has been striking the Middle East region against the “axis of resistance,” a network of Iran-aligned militant groups in the region, including in Syria, Yemen and Iraq.

Amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a rare direct message to the Iranian people on Monday, stating that Israel stands with them as it fights the proxies of Tehran, like Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group.

In a message relayed on YouTube and other channels, PM Netanyahu said, “Every day, you see a regime that subjugates you and makes fiery speeches about defending Lebanon, defending Gaza. Yet every day, that regime plunges our region deeper into darkness and deeper into war.”

Netanyahu added that there’s no place in the Middle East where Israeli forces can’t reach and that “puppets of Iran” were being eliminated in Israel’s offensive. He further said, ”There is nowhere we will not go to protect our people and protect our country.”

Netanyahu’s statement comes after Israel Defense Forces killed Iran-backed Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah in airstrikes in Lebanon’s capital Beirut, which also killed a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps official.

(Read more from the report here)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, emphasizing the importance of preventing further escalation in the West Asia region.

“Terrorism has no place in our world. It is crucial to prevent regional escalation and ensure the safe release of all hostages,” PM Modi stated in a post on X. He reiterated India’s commitment to supporting efforts for a swift restoration of peace and stability.

This conversation follows Israel’s intensified attacks on Hezbollah targets in Beirut and strikes on power plants and the Hodeidah port in Yemen, raising tensions across the Middle East.

Hezbollah announced on Monday that it had launched an attack on Israel using a "Nour Missile," which sources familiar with the group indicate is a ballistic missile, according to Reuters.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Monday that the next phase of the war along the southern border of Lebanon is imminent. This comes as reports from at least two US newspapers suggest that special forces may have already conducted brief incursions. Gallant stated during a meeting with local council leaders in northern Israel, "The next stage in the war against Hezbollah will begin soon." He emphasized that this phase aims to facilitate the return of evacuated residents to their homes. (Reuters)

US President Joe Biden urged for a ceasefire on Monday in response to reports that Israel is planning a limited ground invasion of Lebanon in its conflict with Hezbollah militants, according to a Reuters report. When asked if he supported Israel's actions, Biden stated, "I'm comfortable with them stopping."

Hezbollah's interim leader, Naim Kassem, vowed on Monday to continue fighting Israel, asserting that the militant group is ready for a prolonged conflict despite the recent loss of much of its top command, including Hassan Nasrallah. In his first speech since Nasrallah’s death, Kassem emphasized that Hezbollah's military capabilities remain intact, with deputy commanders already in place to fill any gaps. He stated, “Israel was unable to impact our capabilities,” and noted that the group is prepared for a lengthy battle. Kassem, a founding member and longtime deputy of Nasrallah, will serve in his acting role until a new leader is elected. (AP)

Lebanon's Hezbollah deputy chief on Monday said that they will choose a new Secretary-General for Hezbollah "at the earliest opportunity, based on the mechanism within Hezbollah," news agency Reuters reported.

"The choice will be easy because it is clear and with one heart," Reuters reported.

Lebanon's Hezbollah deputy chief on Monday alleged that the United States supports Israel in committing "massacres" with "limitless support," news agency Reuters reported.

He also underlined the efforts of Lebanon against Israel's attacks, and said, "We continued despite pager attacks, loss of commanders and Nasrallah. We will win, just as we won in our confrontation with Israel in 2006. We are following the leadership, management of war, based in Hezbollah's structure."

(Reuters)

A general view of a building damaged in an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Kola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Photo: REUTERS)

Members of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces walk past a debris-strewn street following an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Kola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Photo: REUTERS)

Displaced people take shelter on the street at a square after fleeing the Israeli strikes, amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in central Beirut, in Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Photo: REUTERS)

Police officers work at the site of an Israeli strike, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Kola, central Beirut, Lebanon September 30, 2024. (Photo: REUTERS)

Smoke rose from Beirut's southern suburbs after a suspected Israeli strike, witness told Reuters on Monday. (Reuters)

Palestinian militant group Hamas said on Monday that its leader in Lebanon Fateh Sherif Abu el-Amin was killed along with some of his family members in an Israeli strike in the south of the country, news agency Reuters reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appointed a former rival, Gideon Saar, as a member of his Cabinet on Sunday, expanding his coalition and strengthening his hold on office, news agency AP reported.

Under their agreement, Netanyahu said Saar would serve as a minister without portfolio and serve in the Security Cabinet, the body that oversees the management of the ongoing war against Israel's enemies across the Middle East, the report stated.

Saar (57) had hoped to replace Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, another rival of Netanyahu's. But a deal to become defence minister fell through several weeks ago after fighting intensified with Hezbollah along Israel's northern border, leaving the popular Gallant in office for the time being. (AP)

The body of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was recovered from the site of an Israeli air attack on Beirut on Sunday, a medical and security source told news agency Reuters.

While Hezbollah's statement on Saturday confirming Nasrallah's death did not say how exactly he was killed nor when his funeral would be, the two sources said his body had no direct wounds and that it appeared the cause of death was blunt trauma from the force of the blast. (Reuters)

In a matter of weeks, Israel has decimated the senior and mid-level ranks of Hezbollah and left the group reeling.

The Israeli air force launched attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen on Sunday. In a statement, the Israeli military said that its attacks included strikes on Yemen’s power plant and sea port used to import oil, Reuters reported.

Earlier, sources had said that air strikes had been launched at Yemen’s Hodeidah port, as per Reuters.

This comes hours after Hezbollah confirmed the death of its senior commander Ali Karaki, after the killings of its chief Hassan Nasarallah and another prominent figure Nabil Kaouk in Israeli strikes on Beirut.

Following this, the Israeli military said that it had conducted a “precise strike” in the Dahyieh area of Beirut. (Reuters)

After killing senior Hezbollah leaders in air strikes on Lebanon, and launching attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen, an Israeli airstrike killed three Palestinian leaders early Monday, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) said in a statement, news agency Reuters reported.

The strike hit the upper floor of an apartment building in the Kola district of Lebanon’s capital, Reuters witnesses said.

Israel's increasing frequency of attacks against the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon and the Houthi militia in Yemen have prompted fears that Middle East fighting could spin out of control and draw in Iran and the United States, Israel's main ally. (Reuters)

After Israel launched its air attack campaign against Lebanon based Hezbollah militant group, more than 1,000 people have died and over 6,000 have been injured. Now, the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR has said that over 70,000 people have fled the country.

The UNHCR, in a post on X, said “The situation is dire for civilians devastated by Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon. More than 70,000 people have fled the country so far.”

Talking about the displaced issue, Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati had earlier said that there could be close to 1 million internally displaced people in Lebanon who have fled Israeli attacks, according to an Al Jazeera’s report.

The Public Health Emergency Operations Center of Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health has said that at least 105 people died in Lebanon on Sunday in Israel’s air attack campaign.

The ministry added that around 359 people were injured in multiple attacks across the country. The health ministry further stated that attacks were carried out “on towns and villages in southern Lebanon, the Bekaa, Baalbek-Hermel, and the southern suburbs of Beirut.”