Israel attacks Lebanon: Air attacks kill 25 people in Lebanon since dawn
- Israel has dismissed global calls for a ceasefire with Hezbollah and continues a bombing campaign that has killed more than 700 people in Lebanon since Monday.
- At least 25 people have been killed since dawn, according to the Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad.
Israel to continue war on Gaza until ‘total victory’: Netanyahu
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says at the UN that “Hamas has got to go” and would have no role in the reconstruction of Gaza as he pledged to fight until “total victory”.
“If Hamas stays in power, it will regroup … and attack Israel again and again and again… So Hamas has got to go,” he said.
Netanyahu also told world leaders that his nation will “continue degrading Hezbollah” until it achieves its goals along the Lebanon border, further dimming hopes for an internationally backed cease-fire to halt the spiral into an all-out regional war.
“Israel has every right to remove this threat and return our citizens to their home safely. And that’s exactly what we’re doing … we’ll continue degrading Hezbollah until all our objectives are met,” Netanyahu said.
“Just imagine if terrorists turned El Paso and San Diego into ghost towns … How long would the American government tolerate that?” he said, shaking his fist in emphasis. “Yet Israel has been tolerating this intolerable situation for almost a year. Well, I’ve come here today to say: Enough is enough.”
More from Netanyahu’s UN address
The Israeli leader claims that Iran will endanger every country in the Middle East and many beyond.
“For too long, the world has appeased Iran. That appeasement must end and that appeasement must end now,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israel can reach any part of Iran if Tehran attacks first.
“I have a message for the tyrants of Tehran. If you strike us, we will strike you,” he said. “There is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that’s true of the entire Middle East.”
Netanyahu claims Israel at war ‘for its life’
After the Israeli attacks kill more than 41,000 people in Gaza and 700 in Lebanon, Netanyahu tells world leaders at the UN that Israel must defend itself “against these savage murderers”.
“Our enemies seek not only to destroy us, they seek to destroy our common civilisation and return all of us to a dark age of tyranny and terror,” he claimed.
Netanyahu starts UN speech
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu takes podium to address world leaders at 79th UN General Assembly.
Turkish delegation, among many others walk out in protest.
We will keep you updated.
Lazzarini appeals for safeguarding UNRWA’s role in Gaza
Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, says the agency “is critical for ensuring a viable transition” after the war ends in the Palestinian enclave.
He made the remarks yesterday at the ministerial meeting co-hosted by Jordan and Sweden on the margins of the 79th UN General Assembly in New York.
Lazzarini said the agency requires “a sustainable model of funding”, adding that UNRWA’s operations are only secure until the end of October, with a shortfall of $80m for this year.
He also called for the rejection of “attempts to tarnish UNRWA’s reputation and end its operations”.
“These efforts do not only threaten Palestine refugees. They threaten the multilateral system. They threaten a future political solution. Your actions at this critical juncture will have repercussions for generations to come. UNRWA is a formidable tool at your disposal – I urge you to use it wisely,” Lazzarini said.
Air raids reported in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley
While hostilities are most intense in southern Lebanon, Israeli air raids have also been reported in the Bekaa Valley, in the eastern part of the country.
Al Jazeera correspondents said a raid hit the road that links the Bekaa Valley to Homs around the town of Rasm el-Hadath.
The state-run NNA agency also reported a violent air raid on the town of Nabi Aila, in the centre of the Bekaa Valley.
WATCH: Israeli missile strike on Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital
In the heart of Deir el-Balah, central Gaza, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital’s backyard, once a refuge for residents escaping Israeli bombardments, has become a site of destruction.
A guided missile, manufactured in the United States, struck this densely populated area, leaving a devastating crater and scattering belongings.
