The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have reportedly begun attacking the Al Wazzani area in southern Lebanon. The Arab media writes it. At the moment there is no confirmation from Israel, as underlined by the Jerusalem Post.
In a meeting with senior Israeli officials just a few hours ago, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had asked that further escalation be avoided with Lebanon, the US State Department announced, explaining that Blinken met with the Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and the National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi.
Iran reportedly has security intelligence that “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the assassination of the leader of the Shiite Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallahshould the opportunity arise to do so”, a source from the Quds Force, the elite unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, reports to the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida.
The source claims that “Israeli security services have so far either failed to find him or Nasrallah eluded attempts to locate him for a few minutes.” The same leader of the Shiite movement allied with Tehran, the source claims, rejected the offer to move with his family to the Islamic Republic.
The Kuwaiti newspaper then reports that “i Security services linked to the Quds Force have been conducting investigations to uncover spy networks that leak information on the exact whereabouts of Hezbollah figures who are assassinated by Israel on an almost daily basis“, underlining that “after initial accusations made against supporters of Lebanese anti-Hezbollah political groups, investigations have shown that some applications and programs on smartphones, in particular WhatsApp, are the main tools of Israeli espionage in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and also in the Gaza Strip”.
An article that appeared a few days ago in the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth claimed that Iran had warned Hezbollah of the possibility of Israel assassinating its secretary general.
The author of the article, Smadar Perry, said that an Iranian envoy arrived in Beirut soon after the assassination of the leader of Hezbollah’s ‘Nasr’ unit in southern Lebanon, Talib Sami Abdullah, and met with people close to him to Nasrallah to inform them of Tehran’s concern that Israel was about to target Hezbollah’s own leader.
According to Perry, It is known that Hezbollah believes that Israel never wanted to eliminate Nasrallah in his 32 years of leadership of the pro-Iranian Shiite party.
Cyprus and Hezbollah threats: “We are neutral on the war in Gaza”
Cyprus has meanwhile claimed its neutrality with respect to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, underlining that ”we are not involved in any war”. This was clarified by the Cypriot government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis interviewed by the public television CyBc after the Secretary General of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah threatened to strike Cyprus if it provided support to Israel by allowing the use of its territories.
“Cyprus is not involved, and will not be involved, in any war or conflict,” Letymbiotis told CyBC. ”Therefore, the Hezbollah leader’s statements do not correspond to reality,” she added. Cyprus has ”excellent” relations with Lebanon and would not allow any state to use its territory for military operations against another, Letymbiotis said.
Israel destroys rocket launchers hidden in humanitarian zone in Khan Younis
The Meanwhile, the IDF reported that they had hit and destroyed an Islamic Jihad rocket launcher in a shelter in the so-called ‘humanitarian zone’ of Khan Younis, in the south of the Gaza Strip. The IDF announced this, explaining that during the operation measures were adopted to protect Palestinian civilians.
“Terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip continue to place terrorist weapons and infrastructure among the civilian population, endangering them and using them as a human shield”, reads the IDF note.
Borrell, talks with Jordanian foreign ministry on truce and hostages
The High Representative for Foreign Policy of the European Union Josep Borrell then had a telephone conversation with the Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi. As Borrell himself explained on ‘X’, the conversation focused ”on the ongoing catastrophe in Gaza and the worsening of the situation in the West Bank. We share the deep concern that full humanitarian access is still being denied to the people of Gaza, that the hostages are still not freed, that the fighting is still ongoing despite binding orders from the International Court of Justice, and that the Biden plan has not yet been implemented”.
Borrell added that ”we will continue to work closely to achieve ceasefire, humanitarian access, hostage release, respect for international law and human rights, accountability and peace. I look forward to next month’s EU-Jordan Association Council to deepen our cooperation and partnership”.
Pentagon confirms resumption of humanitarian aid deliveries
The Pentagon has confirmed that deliveries of humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip have resumed via the temporary floating dock built by the United States off the coast of the Palestinian enclave. The objective, explained Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder, is to increase humanitarian assistance to the civilian population. Yesterday the spokesperson for the Nicosia Foreign Ministry, Theodoris Gotsis, announced that the pier built by the United States was back in operation.
Armenia recognizes Palestinian state
“The Republic of Armenia recognizes the State of Palestine”. This is the conclusion of a note from Yerevan’s Foreign Ministry which underlines that the Caucasus country has adhered to the resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
In the note, relaunched by the local press, Armenia says it is “sincerely interested” in the peace and stability of the Middle East and in a “lasting reconciliation between the Jewish and Palestinian people”. Yerevan therefore recalls that “on various international platforms we have always supported a peaceful and global solution to the Palestinian issue and supported the principle of ‘two states’ for the solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict”.
The implementation of this principle, the note concludes, is “the only way to guarantee that Palestinians and Israelis can realize their legitimate aspirations. On the basis of the above and reaffirming the commitment to international law and the principles of equality, sovereignty and peaceful coexistence of peoples, the Republic of Armenia recognizes the State of Palestine”.
Two IDF reservists dead
Two Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) reservists were killed and three others were seriously injured in a mortar attack in the center of the Gaza Strip. The IDF reported this, explaining that the number of soldiers killed in the offensive against Hamas and in operations on the border with the Gaza Strip has risen to 314, including those that led to the rescue of the hostages.
The victims are Sergeant Omer Smadga, 25, and Sergeant Saadia Yaakov Derai, 27.
