Israeli troops attacked by Hezbollah as Lebanon’s Beirut struck again
It looks like another incident, another severe incident for the Israelis on the border. Hezbollah said it detonated explosives on the Golani Brigade, one of Israel’s elite brigades fighting on the ground there.
Israeli Telegram channels are reporting the same thing, saying that helicopters are evacuating many wounded, potentially dead, to hospitals close to Haifa in the north of Israel.
It really is giving a very quick reality check to Israel, which has been enjoying a lot of confidence and the feeling of victory and invincibility in its air campaign over the last two weeks or so. It is very difficult and different for them on the ground.
They do know this. Every single soldier who goes into this battle knows that Hezbollah is not Hamas.
This is a far more formidable, trained fighting force.
So it is going to be very difficult. And I think the longer that we’re going to have this news that Israeli forces are sustaining a lot of injuries and fatalities, at some point, the tide with public opinion will change.
Lebanon crises takes eyes off Israel’s war on Gaza
Palestinians fear the crisis in Lebanon is diverting the world’s attention from Gaza where Israeli attacks killed dozens more this week and diminished already dim prospects for a ceasefire.
“The focus is on Lebanon, which means the war in Gaza isn’t ending anytime soon,” said Hussam Ali, 45, a Gaza City resident.
With attention swinging to Lebanon, the war on Gaza risks being prolonged, said Ashraf Abouelhoul, managing editor of state-owned newspaper Al-Ahram in Egypt.
“The most dangerous thing isn’t that the media attention is going elsewhere. It is the fact that no one in the world is now talking about a deal or a ceasefire, and that frees Israel’s hand to continue its military offensive and plans in Gaza.”
‘Phase of unilateral self-restraint has ended,’ Iran tells US in indirect message: Official
An Iranian source has told Al Jazeera that Iran has sent a message to the United States, via Qatar, addressing the rising regional tensions.
In the message, Tehran told Washington that “the phase of unilateral self-restraint has ended.”
It also said any Israeli attack would meet an “unconventional response” that includes targeting Israeli infrastructure.
The indirect message also emphasised that Iran does not want a regional war, the official said.
Israel attack on Lebanon ‘severely weakens’ recovery prospects
S&P Global Ratings says Israel’s military action in Lebanon “severely weakened” recovery prospects for Lebanon’s already fragile economy.
The ratings agency said the surge in fighting and attacks in Lebanon could persist into next year and also spread to other parts of the country.
“The loss of human lives, damage to infrastructure, rising fiscal costs of war, population displacement, and declining tourism revenue, alongside changing political dynamics given the weakening of Hezbollah, will put severe pressure on Lebanon’s economy,” S&P said in a media release.
“It will also further delay economic and financial reforms, and the longer-term recovery of fiscal and external accounts.”
The maps that help explain the Israel-Hezbollah conflict
Israel is once again fighting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, nearly two decades after a UN resolution that was meant to bring peace to the area.
Al Jazeera’s Virginia Pietromarchi looks at some of the history that is shaping the conflict today.
EU’s Borrell condemns Israeli killing of paramedics in Beirut
The EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says Israel has violated international humanitarian law by killing healthcare workers in central Beirut.
The Israeli military “targeted once again healthcare workers overnight in central Beirut”, said Borrell.
Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad said on Thursday that 97 medical personnel have been killed and dozens of health clinics attacked since start of Israeli air strikes on Lebanon.
Emirates airline halts all Iraq, Iran and Jordan flights
Dubai-based Emirates airline says it has cancelled flights to Iraq, Iran and Jordan for three days over “regional unrest”.
“Emirates is cancelling all flights to/from Iraq [Basra and Baghdad], Iran [Tehran], and Jordan [Amman] on 4th and 5th October due to regional unrest,” said the airline, which also halted services to the destinations on Thursday.
The Middle East’s biggest airline had previously announced cancellations between Dubai and Beirut until October 8, as several other carriers put services to the region on hold.
Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit exposes Israeli war crimes in Gaza
A feature length investigation by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit exposes Israeli war crimes in the Gaza Strip through the medium of photos and videos posted online by Israeli soldiers during the yearlong conflict.
The material reveals a range of illegal activities from wanton destruction and looting to the demolition of entire neighbourhoods and murder. The film also tells the story of the war through the eyes of Palestinian journalists, human rights workers and everyday Gaza residents.
And it exposes the complicity of Western governments – in particular the use of RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus as a base for British surveillance flights over Gaza.
