The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) said it had struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on Wednesday morning in retaliation to what it claims was a missile launch.
In a statement on Telegram, the IDF said: “An anti-tank missile launch from Lebanon toward the area of Gladiola was identified. In response, the IDF struck the sources of the fire.
“Since this morning, the IDF struck targets in Lebanon.
“A short while ago, IAF fighter jets struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure and military compounds in the area of Hula in Lebanon.
“In addition, IDF tanks fired in order to remove a threat in the area of Ayta ash Shab in Lebanon. In addition, IDF artillery fired toward the area of Al Dahra in order to remove a threat.
“Furthermore, a terrorist cell that was identified in a compound in the area of Marwahin was struck by the IDF.”
The Palestinian Wafa news agency is reporting that one member of staff and a Palestinian patient in the intensive care unit were inured in the Jordanian field hospital in Khan Younis.
Earlier the Jordanian army said its military field hospital was badly damaged as a result of Israeli shelling in the vicinity. The army said it held Israel responsible for a “flagrant breach of international law”.
Citing a military source from the Jordanian armed forces, Wafa reports the injuries were sustained “in clashes near the hospital in the past few hours”.
Wafa said the staff member had “moderate injuries” and would be airlifted to Jordan for medical attention. The patient was reported to be “injured by shrapnel and a bullet”.
The news agency reported: “Despite significant material damage due to the ongoing Israeli bombardment in the vicinity, which started yesterday and continued into Wednesday morning, the hospital remains committed to fulfilling its medical and humanitarian duties to the residents of the Gaza Strip.”
India is engaged in diplomatic negotiations with Iran on the attacks on ships in the Red Sea by the Houthi movement, an Indian government source told Reuters on Wednesday.
It has just gone 2pm in Gaza City, Tel Aviv and Beirut, 3.30pm in Tehran, and 5pm in Islamabad. Here are the headlines …
Israel claims that it has killed a Hamas member who it believes was “responsible for interrogating individuals suspected of espionage” in the southern Gaza Strip. The Israeli military said: “IAF aircraft eliminated Bilal Nofal, who was responsible for interrogating individuals suspected of carrying out espionage activities against the terrorist organisation in the southern Gaza Strip.”
Israel has killed several people in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including, it claimed, the “head of terrorist infrastructure” in the Balata camp in the Israeli-occupied city of Nablus. The Palestine Red Crescent Society reported that four Palestinians had been killed “due to the occupation’s bombardment” of Tulkarm refugee camp. It also said its ambulances were prevented from assisting at the scene of a strike near Nablus by Israeli forces. Palestinian news agency Wafa reported 85 Palestinians were detained overnight. Israel has detained about 6,000 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since 7 October.
The Jordanian army said on Wednesday its military field hospital in the city of Khan Younis in Gaza was badly damaged as a result of Israeli shelling in the vicinity. In a statement, the army said it held Israel responsible for a “flagrant breach of international law”. 24,448 Palestinians have been killed and 61,504 have been wounded in Israeli strikes on Gaza since 7 October, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
Pakistan has recalled its ambassador from Iran after Iran launched airstrikes on Pakistan territory, apparently aimed at a Sunni militant group. Pakistan’s foreign ministry said two children were killed and three others were injured in what it called an “illegal” airstrike and “unprovoked violation of its airspace”. Militant group Jaish al-Adl, which has claimed bombings and kidnapped Iranian border police in the past, acknowledged the assault in a statement shared online.
António Guterres has repeated his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, and a process that leads to sustained peace for Israelis and Palestinians, based on a two-state solution. Speaking at Davos, the UN secretary general said: “This is the only way to stem the suffering and prevent a spillover that could send the entire region up in flames.”
The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has described the situation in Gaza as gut-wrenching, saying: “The suffering among innocent men, women and children breaks my heart.” Speaking at Davos he insisted the US had pressed Israel about its responsibilities every step of the way, meaning there were “several dogs that did not bark”. Blinken said a reformed Palestinian Authority must be part of any solution in the region, but it will need to operate with the support of Israel, not its opposition.
Relatives of Israeli hostage Kfir Bibas have this week held a first birthday celebration for the baby who was snatched on 7 October and abducted into Gaza during the Hamas attack inside southern Israel. The youngest hostage to be kidnapped would be celebrating the milestone on Thursday. In November, Hamas broadcast a video announcing the death of the baby, his brother and mother, saying they had been killed in an Israeli airstrike. But there has been no confirmation from Israeli officials, and relatives have since clung to the hope that they are not dead. About 132 hostages are still believed to be in Gaza, including at least 27 believed to have been killed.
A deal to allow the delivery of medicines to hostages in Gaza and aid into the territory has been agreed after mediation by Doha and Paris. In a statement Doha announced a deal “where medicine along with other humanitarian aid is to be delivered to civilians in Gaza … in exchange for delivering medication needed for Israeli captives in Gaza”.
American forces have destroyed four anti-ship missiles in Yemen. The US said the missiles threatened civilian and military vessels. The latest attack on Red Sea shipping saw the Houthis hit a Greek-owned cargo ship with a missile off the coast of Yemen as it headed to the Suez canal. No injuries were reported and the vessel remained navigable.
Pakistan has recalled its ambassador from Iran and the Iranian ambassador to Pakistan – who is at the moment visiting Iran – will not be allowed to come back, Reuters reports Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday.
Here are some of the latest images from Gaza, Israel and the occupied West Bank sent to us over the news wires.
Relatives of Israeli hostage Kfir Bibas have this week held a first birthday celebration for the baby who was snatched on 7 October and abducted into Gaza during the Hamas attack inside southern Israel.
The youngest hostage to be kidnapped would be celebrating the milestone tomorrow. AFP reports his family are marking the occasion with a cake and candles at kibbutz Nir Oz.
In November, Hamas broadcast a video announcing the death of the baby, his brother and mother, saying they had been killed in an Israeli airstrike. But there has been no confirmation from Israeli officials, and relatives have since clung to the hope that they are not dead.
Out of the roughly 400 inhabitants of kibbutz Nir Oz, about one in four was either killed or kidnapped on 7 October. Kfir was abducted along with his four-year-old brother Ariel and their parents Yarden and Shiri Bibas.
Yossi Schneider, cousin of the baby’s mother Shiri Bibas, said they are “doing things that are related to a birthday – but the birthday kid is not here.”
The press visit to the kibbutz was organised by “Bring them home now”, a group of families of the hostages who have continued to campaign for their release after now being held in captivity for over 100 days.
The Jordanian army said on Wednesday its military field hospital in the city of Khan Younis in Gaza was badly damaged as a result of Israeli shelling in the vicinity.
In a statement, the army said it held Israel responsible for a “flagrant breach of international law”.
Jordan and the United Arab Emirates set up field hospitals inside Gaza several weeks into Israel’s bombardment of the territory.
An official at Tulkarm refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank has told the AFP news agency that “the camp is besieged by aircraft and heavy numbers of the Israeli army, and tanks”.
Earlier, the Palestine Red Crescent Society reported that four Palestinians had been killed “due to the occupation’s bombardment”.
Since the 7 October surprise attack inside southern Israel launched from Gaza by Hamas, an AFP tally has counted about 350 people killed by Israeli army raids and attacks by settlers inside the occupied West Bank. About 6,000 people have been detained by Israel during the same period.
Al Jazeera is carrying quotes from senior Hamas official Moussa Abu Marzouk about the deal brokered by Qatar and France to deliver medicine into the Gaza Strip, some of which is destined for Israeli hostages who have been held captive for over 100 days.
It quotes him saying that for every one box of medicine destined for hostages, 1,000 boxes for Palestinians will be included.
Al Jazeera goes on to report:
Abu Marzouk says Israeli authorities will not have the chance to inspect the shipments. He says Hamas insisted Qatar provide the medication and not France because of the European country’s support for Israel.
About 132 hostages are still believed to be in Gaza, including at least 27 believed to have been killed. Forty-five hostages are expected to receive medication under the agreement, according to the French presidency. The deliveries will go on for three months under the deal.
A senior Pakistani security official, speaking to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to reporters, told the news agency Iran had shared no information with Pakistan prior to the strike inside its borders. Iran appears to have been targeting the Jaish al-Adl group.
The security official said Pakistan reserved the right to respond at a time and place of the country’s choosing and such a strike would be measured and in line with public expectations.
“The dangerous precedent set by Iran is destabilizing and has reciprocal implications,” the official said.
Jan Achakzai, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s Balochistan province, also condemned the attack. “Pakistan has always sought cooperation from all the countries of region – including Iran – to combat terrorism.”
“This is unacceptable and Pakistan has a right to respond to any aggression committed against its sovereignty.”
António Guterres has repeated his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, and a process that leads to sustained peace for Israelis and Palestinians, based on a two-state solution.
Speaking at Davos, the UN secretary general said:
This is the only way to stem the suffering and prevent a spillover that could send the entire region up in flames.
Reuters also reports that at Davos, the UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Otto Pedersen, said the world needs a quick end to the Gaza war.
Speaking at the Word Economic Forum, Pedersen said he was extremely worried about the conflict because the “war is spreading and there have been escalations”.
Graeme Wearden is in Davos for the Guardian
Asked at Davos whether Jewish lives are more valuable than Muslim and Palestinian Christian lives, given the asymmetry in casualties in the Israel-Hamas war, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said “No. Period.”
The 7 October attack inside southern Israel killed an estimated 1,200 people. Since then, authorities in Gaza have said that nearly 25,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s military response.
Blinken said that for him, and for so many of us, what we are seeing nearly every day in Gaza is gut-wrenching, adding: “The suffering among innocent men, women and children breaks my heart.”
He insisted that the US had pressed Israel about its responsibilities every step of the way, meaning there were “several dogs that did not bark”, but added: “That in no way takes away from the tragedy we have seen and continue to see.”
Blinken said that no country would accept a repeat of the surprise 7 October Hamas attack inside southern Israel, and that it is hard to overstate the psychological impact on Israel of what happened on that day.
The biggest poison we face around the world is dehumanisation, he continued, saying “the inability to see the humanity in the other” was the issue.
We need to remove that poison, he said, which means having leaders around the world who see that, and are prepared to act on it.
My colleague Graeme Wearden is in Davos for the Guardian, and has been watching US secretary of state Antony Blinken speak:
Antony Blinken, US secretary of state, has said he feels a “fierce urgency” to make progress towards peace in the Middle East region, but that Israel needs to be integrated and feel secure, and there must also be a pathway to a Palestinian state.
In conversation with WEF founder Klaus Schwab, and commentator Thomas Friedman, Blinken said a reformed Palestinian Authority can deliver better for their people and must be part of the solution, but it will need to operate with the support of Israel, not its opposition.
Blinken said “even the most effective” Palestinian Authority will struggle if it has the active opposition of the Israeli government.
Asked whether this is the worst time to be US secretary of state, or just in the top five, Blinken argues that the US is in a “renewed position of strength” under Joe Biden.
He said Biden asked him to reengage with international partners, and that has happened. It means that when dealing with China, and Russia, the world has more convergence than before, he argues.
In the Middle East, we have a profound and gut-wrenching challenge, Blinken continued. He said of what he sees in Gaza “the suffering breaks my heart”.
He said he is hearing from nearly every country that they want the US at the table, and without US leadership, you risk being left with a vacuum, Blinken argued. He said vacuums tend to be filled by bad actors.
Pope Francis on Wednesday condemned the Iranian missile attack on the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq, and urged all parties to avoid an escalation of conflicts in the Middle East.
“I express my closeness and solidarity with the victims, all civilians, of the missile attack that hit an urban area of Erbil, the capital of the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan,” Reuters reports the pope said during his weekly audience at the Vatican.
“Good relations between neighbours are not built with similar actions, but with dialogue and collaboration. I ask everyone to avoid any step that fuels tension in the Middle East and other war scenarios,” he added.
Francis called for prayers for the “many victims of war”, mentioning specifically Ukraine, Gaza, Palestinian territory, and Israel.
Britain’s foreign minister, David Cameron, will meet the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, and other leaders at the Word Economic Forum in Davos, the British government said on Wednesday, Reuters reports.
However, Masrour Barzani, prime minister of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, has reportedly cancelled a planned meeting there with Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, in protest over Iranian airstrikes.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiugFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVndWFyZGlhbi5jb20vd29ybGQvbGl2ZS8yMDI0L2phbi8xNy9taWRkbGUtZWFzdC1jcmlzaXMtbGl2ZS1uZXdzLXVwZGF0ZXMtaXNyYWVsLWdhemEtcGFsZXN0aW5lLWhhbWFzLXdhci1pcmFuLXN0cmlrZS1wYWtpc3Rhbi1zdW5uaS11cy1yZWQtc2VhLWNyaXNpcy1ob3V0aGktbWlzc2lsZS1hdHRhY2vSAQA?oc=5
2024-01-17 12:36:00Z
CBMiugFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVndWFyZGlhbi5jb20vd29ybGQvbGl2ZS8yMDI0L2phbi8xNy9taWRkbGUtZWFzdC1jcmlzaXMtbGl2ZS1uZXdzLXVwZGF0ZXMtaXNyYWVsLWdhemEtcGFsZXN0aW5lLWhhbWFzLXdhci1pcmFuLXN0cmlrZS1wYWtpc3Rhbi1zdW5uaS11cy1yZWQtc2VhLWNyaXNpcy1ob3V0aGktbWlzc2lsZS1hdHRhY2vSAQA
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar