Israeli strikes sealed off Lebanon’s main border crossing with Syria on Friday morning, hours after an intense Israeli attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs believed to have targeted the secretary-general’s heir apparent. assassinated by Hezbollah.
The attacks have raised fears inside Lebanon that a new Israeli offensive on Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah militants will provoke an all-out conflict, with Israel also prepared to respond to Tuesday’s Iranian missile barrage on its territory. . US President Joe Biden said on Thursday (3) that Israel’s response could include an attack on Iran’s oil facilities.
Lebanese Transport Minister Ali Hamieh told Reuters that Friday’s attack on the Syrian border hit Lebanese territory close to the border crossing, creating a crater four meters wide.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) accused Hezbollah on Thursday of using the crossing with Syria to transport military equipment to Lebanon.
“The IDF will not allow the smuggling of these weapons and will not hesitate to act if forced to do so, as has been done during this war,” IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X.
According to Lebanese government statistics, more than 300,000 people – the vast majority of them Syrians – crossed from Lebanon to Syria in the last 10 days to escape increasing Israeli bombardment.
The southern suburb of Dahiye, a stronghold of Iran-backed Hezbollah, came under renewed attacks around midnight on Thursday after Israel ordered people to leave their homes in some areas, residents and security sources said. .
The airstrikes targeted Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine, the supposed successor to its slain leader Hassan Nasrallah, in an underground bunker, Axios reporter Barak Ravid said on X, citing three Israeli officials.
Safieddine’s fate was unclear, he said.
Israel’s military declined to comment and Hezbollah had no comment on Safieddine’s fate.
Huge explosions rocked the sky near Beirut’s main airport in the early hours of Friday, and Lebanese civilians said they lived in constant fear.
“It’s like you’re alive, but not alive. We are alive but we don’t know for how long, we are alive but we don’t know when the rockets will hit you and your family,” said 40-year-old Nouhad Chaib.
The Israeli military on Friday told residents of more than 20 cities in southern Lebanon to leave their homes immediately, spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X as Israel pressed ahead with its incursions into the region. Nearly 90 villages in the south have been ordered to move so far, as well as parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Three Hezbollah-linked rescue workers were injured in an attack in a southern suburb, a Lebanese security source told Reuters.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah announced several attacks this Friday against positions inside Israel, including the missile rescue at the Israeli Ilania base.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi landed in Beirut on Friday, according to Lebanese state media. He is expected to meet with Lebanon’s interim prime minister, Najib Mikati, and parliament speaker Nabih Berri, who is a close ally of Hezbollah.
Understand the escalation in conflicts in the Middle East
Iran’s missile attack on Israel on the 1st marked a new stage in the regional conflict in the Middle East. On one side of the war is Israel, with support from the United States. On the other, the Axis of Resistance, which receives financial and military support from Iran and which has a series of paramilitary groups.
Israel has soldiers on three of these fronts: Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In the other four, it carries out aerial bombings.
The Israeli Army began a “limited ground operation” in Lebanon on September 30, days after Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a bombing of the group’s headquarters in the Beirut suburb.
The Israel Defense Forces say they have killed virtually the entire Hezbollah chain of command in similar bombings carried out in recent weeks. On September 23, Lebanon had its deadliest day since the 2006 war, with more than 500 fatalities.
At least two Brazilian teenagers died in the attacks. Itamaraty condemned the situation and called for an end to hostilities. With the increase in hostilities, the Brazilian government announced an operation to repatriate Brazilians in Lebanon.
In the West Bank, the Israeli military is trying to dismantle groups opposed to Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory.
In the Gaza Strip, Israel seeks to eradicate Hamas, responsible for the October 7 attack that left more than 1,200 people dead, according to information from the Israeli government. The Israeli operation killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar remains hidden in tunnels in the Gaza Strip, where dozens of Israelis kidnapped by Hamas are also believed to be in captivity.
This content was originally published in Israel bombs road used by displaced Lebanese on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
