Antony Blinken says ‘now is the time’ to end war in Gza
Visiting US top diplomat Antony Blinken told reporters in Tel Aviv Wednesday that the war in Gaza should end now, adding that Israel needed to do more to allow in aid despite “progress”.
“Since October 7 a year ago, Israel has achieved most of its strategic objectives when it comes to Gaza … Now is the time to turn those successes into enduring, strategic success,” Blinken said, adding that on aid he saw “progress being made, which is good, but more progress needs to be made and, most critically, it needs to be sustained”.
Rocket attacks set off sirens as Blinken visits Tel Aviv
Israel’s air force shot down two rockets from Lebanon that set off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, the military said, as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was on a visit to the city.
Some senior US State Department officials and travelling press at Blinken’s hotel left the breakfast hall and rushed to the shelter downstairs along with other hotel guests and staff when the sirens went off.
The downing of the rockets came shortly after Israeli forces intercepted two drones launched from the east targeting the Red Sea port city of Eilat, the military said.
There were no immediate reports of injuries in either the drone or rocket attacks.
Israeli army strikes southern Beirut suburbs overnight
At least three Israeli strikes targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs overnight on Tuesday following calls to evacuate, hours after a strike flattened a building in the Hezbollah stronghold.
“The smoke is still smouldering behind me,” said FRANCE 24 senior reporter Catherine Norris Trent bringing us the latest live from Beirut.
Watch her full report below:
Hezbollah says struck army intelligence base near Tel Aviv
Lebanon’s Hezbollah group said it fired rockets at an Israeli military intelligence base in the Tel Aviv suburbs Wednesday, following a night of strikes on the group’s south Beirut bastion.
Hezbollah fighters launched “a rocket salvo” at “the Glilot base of the military intelligence unit … in the Tel Aviv suburbs”, the group said in a statement, referring to a base targeted several times in recent days. It said the rocket fire was “in response to attacks and massacres committed by the Zionist enemy”.
Hezbollah yet to confirm death of Hashen Safieddine, presumed successor of Hassan Nazrallah
Israel’s army said it had killed Hashem Safieddine, the cleric tipped to succeed slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an air strike on Beirut three weeks ago that targeted commanders of the Iran-backed militant group.
Hezbollah has not issued a statement about the Israeli claims.
“He was a member of Hezbollah’s executive council for years and a cousin of Nazrallah,” explained FRANCE 24 senior reporter Catherine Norris Trent.
“If the death is confirmed by sources other than the Israeli military, Hezbollah will seem even more rudderless at this stage,” she added.
Watch her full report from Beirut below:
Israel army issues new evacuation call for south Lebanon city of Tyre
The Israeli army called on residents of parts of the south Lebanon city of Tyre to evacuate on Wednesday ahead of military operations targeting Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
The army’s Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee posted a map of the affected streets in Tyre on social media platform X, saying: “You must immediately move out of the area marked in red and head north of the Awali River. Anyone who is near Hezbollah elements, facilities and combat equipment is putting his life in danger.”
Israeli military intercepts two drones in Eilat
The Israeli military intercepted two drones that were launched from the east and crossed into Israel’s waters in the area of Eilat, the army said in a statement on Wednesday.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq said in two statements that it attacked Israel’s port city of Eilat with drones twice on Wednesday.
The pro-Iranian militant group added that it struck “vital” targets there.
Welcome to our live blog, where we post the latest news on the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. To read about yesterday’s key developments, click here.
- Israel issued evacuation warnings for suburbs in Lebanon’s port city Tyre.
- Israel confirmed it had killed Hashem Safieddine, the heir apparent to late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah who was killed last month in an Israeli attack. Hezbollah has yet to confirm Safieddine’s death.
- At least 42,718 Palestinians have been killed and 100,282 wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began on October 7, 2023, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Leave a Comment