Strikes hit south Beirut after Israeli evacuation orders: Lebanon news agency
Updated 01 November 2024
AFP
BEIRUT: At least 10 strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs at dawn on Friday, Lebanon’s official news agency said, after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for buildings in the area.
AFPTV footage showed explosions followed by clouds of smoke that rang out in the city’s suburbs after the Israeli army ordered several buildings in Hezbollah’s stronghold to evacuate.
“The raids left massive destruction in the targeted areas, as dozens of buildings were leveled to the ground, in addition to the outbreak of fires,” the National News Agency (NNA) said.
Israeli warplanes carried out 10 raids targeting the suburban areas of Ghobeiry and Al-Kafaat, the Sayyed Hadi Highway, the vicinity of the Al-Mujtaba Complex, and the old airport road, it added.
The Israeli military has repeatedly bombarded south Beirut in recent weeks, while also carrying out deadly strikes elsewhere in the capital and across Lebanon.
Friday’s strikes come a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met visiting US officials to discuss a possible deal to end the war in Lebanon, with the death toll mounting on both sides of the border.
At least 1,829 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel began an air campaign targeting Hezbollah strongholds on September 23, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry figures, though the real toll is likely higher.
US tells citizens leave Syria ‘now while commercial options remain available’
Updated 37 sec ago
AFP
WASHINGTON: US citizens in Syria should immediately leave the country “while commercial options remain available,” the State Department said Friday, as militant forces continue their offensive against President Bashar Assad’s troops.
“The security situation continues to be volatile and unpredictable with active clashes between armed groups throughout the country. The Department urges US citizens to depart Syria now while commercial options remain available,” the department said in a security alert posted on social media.
Syrian government loses control of southern city of Daraa: monitor
Earlier Friday, local factions seized the Nassib-Jaber border crossing with Jordan, the Observatory said, with Jordan closing its side of the crossing, Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya said
Updated 54 min 7 sec ago
AFP
BEIRUT, Lebanon: The Syrian government lost control Friday of the symbolic southern city of Daraa and most of the eponymous province, which was the cradle of the country’s 2011 uprising, a war monitor said.
“Local factions have taken control of more areas in Daraa province, including Daraa city... They now control more than 90 percent of the province, as government forces successively pulled out,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
In Daraa province, only the Sanamayn area is still in government hands, Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the British-based monitor with a network of sources in Syria, told AFP.
Earlier Friday, local factions seized the Nassib-Jaber border crossing with Jordan, the Observatory said, with Jordan closing its side of the crossing, Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya said.
Daraa province was the cradle of the 2011 uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s rule, but it returned to government control in 2018 under a ceasefire deal brokered by Assad ally Russia. It was a militant bastion at the height of the civil war in the early 2010s.
Former militants there who accepted the 2018 deal were able to keep their light weapons.
Daraa province has been plagued by unrest in recent years, with frequent attacks, armed clashes and assassinations, some claimed by the Daesh group.
UK to join US-Bahrain Middle East security agreement
Bahrain's foreign minister says agreement brings together countries wanting to deliver "stability and prosperity"
Pact will by signed on Saturday during Manama Dialogue conference
Updated 07 December 2024
Arab News
LONDON: The UK is set to join a security pact between Bahrain and the US designed to build “long-term stability in the Middle East.”
The UK government said it would sign a deal to join the US-Bahrain Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement on Saturday in Manama.
The original agreement between the US and Bahrain, which have long-standing security ties, was signed in September last year.
At the time the State Department said it would “enhance cooperation across a wide range of areas, from defense and security to emerging technology, trade, and investment.”
Bahrain’s foreign minister confirmed on Friday that the UK had been invited to be a partner in the agreement, Reuters reported.
“The comprehensive security integration and prosperity agreement is designed not as a bilateral arrangement, but as the beginning of a multilateral framework that aims to bring together countries with an equal interest in delivering stability and prosperity,” Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani told the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain.
Hamish Falconer, the UK’s minister for Middle East and North Africa, will travel to Bahrain on Saturday to sign the agreement with officials from Bahrain and the US.
He said the pact was a “joint commitment to be at the forefront of global efforts to promote the rule of law and contribute to regional stability and prosperity.”
Falconer added: “The Middle East is subject to instability and the risks of escalation and miscalculation are high. It is more important than ever for the UK to join efforts to build long-term regional security in the region, alongside key partners Bahrain and (the) US.”
Both the UK and the US have major naval bases in Bahrain, home to America’s Fifth Fleet. Bahrain has supported American and British efforts to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea, which has been targeted by attacks from Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen for more than a year.
By entering the agreement the UK will bolster its strong security and economic cooperation with Bahrain, the British government said.
The first UK Bahrain Strategic Investment Partnership agreed in 2023 has provided over £1 billion of investment in the UK, the announcement added
The security agreement comes as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer seeks to deepen relations with Arab Gulf states.
The emir of Qatar this week took part in a two-day state visit to Britain, during which the two countries signed an agreement for Qatar to invest £1 billion in British climate technologies.
Ailing kids wait months for Israeli permission to leave Gaza for treatment
Osaid Shaheen, who is nearly 2, now faces having his eyes removed after Israel rejected his evacuation for treatment of cancer in his retinas
Updated 07 December 2024
AP
DEIR AL-BALAH: The 12-year-old Palestinian boy was lying in a hospital bed in central Gaza, wracked with leukemia, malnourished, and whimpering in pain despite the morphine doctors were giving him, when Rosalia Bollen, a UNICEF official, said she saw him in late October.
Islam Al-Rayahen’s family had asked Israeli authorities six times over the past months for permission to evacuate him from Gaza for a desperately needed stem cell transplant, Bollen said.
She said the request was refused six times for unexplained security reasons.
Islam died three days after she saw him, Bollen said.
Thousands of patients in Gaza are waiting for Israeli permission for urgently needed medical evacuation from Gaza for treatment of war wounds or chronic diseases they cannot get after the destruction of much of the territory’s health care system by Israel’s 15-month military campaign.
HIGHLIGHTS
• WHO says 14,000 patients of all ages need medical evacuation from Gaza.
• The territory’s Health Ministry puts the number higher, at 22,000, including 7,000 patients in extreme need who could die soon without treatment.
Among them are at least 2,500 children who UNICEF says must be transported immediately.
“They cannot afford to wait. These children will die. They are dying in waiting, and I find it striking that the world is letting that happen,” Bollen said.
The Israeli military often takes months to respond to medical evacuation requests, and the number of evacuations has plunged in recent months. In some cases, the military rejects either the patient or, in the case of children, the caregivers accompanying them on vague security grounds or with no explanation.
The Israeli decisions appear to be “arbitrary and are not made on criteria nor logic,” said Moeen Mahmood, the Jordan country director for Doctors Without Borders.
COGAT, the Israeli military agency in charge of humanitarian affairs for Palestinians, said in a statement that it “makes every effort to approve the departure of children and their families for medical treatments, subject to a security check.”
It did not respond when asked for details about Islam’s case.
A military official said Israel’s internal intelligence service reviews whether the patient or their escort has what he called “a connection to terrorism.”
If one is found, they are refused.
Osaid Shaheen, who is nearly 2, now faces having his eyes removed after Israel rejected his evacuation for treatment of cancer in his retinas.
The toddler was diagnosed with cancer in April after his mother, Sondos Abu Libda, noticed his left eyelid was droopy.
The World Health Organization requested his evacuation through the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza, but the crossing was shut down in May when Israeli troops took it over in an offensive, Abu Libda said.
WHO applied again, this time for Osaid to leave through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Israel, now the only route for evacuees to travel. During the long wait, the cancer spread to the child’s other eye and reached stage 4.
Abu Libda was told Osaid was rejected on security grounds in November, and there was no further explanation.
She was stunned, she said. “I did not expect that a child could get a security rejection.”
Doctors have given the boy three doses of chemotherapy. But with supplies short in Gaza, they’re struggling to get more. If they can’t, they will have to remove Osaid’s eyes, or cancer will spread to other parts of his body, Abu Libda said.
“He’s just a child. How will he live his life without seeing? How will he play? How will he see his future, and how will his life turn out?” Abu Libda asked, standing outside the house where her family is sheltering in the Beni Suheil district of southern Gaza.
Nearby, little Osaid — who so far still has his sight — toddled around in the rubble of a building destroyed by Israeli forces, smiling as he played with chunks of debris.
When asked about his case, COGAT did not reply.
WHO says 14,000 patients of all ages need medical evacuation from Gaza.
The territory’s Health Ministry puts the number higher, at 22,000, including 7,000 patients in extreme need who could die soon without treatment, according to Mohammed Abu Salmeya, a ministry official in charge of evacuation referrals.
Since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, 5,230 patients have been evacuated, said Margaret Harris, a WHO spokesperson.
Since May, when the Rafah crossing shut down, the rate has slowed, with only 342 patients evacuated, she said, an average of less than two a day. Before the war, when Israeli permission was also necessary, around 100 patients a day were transferred out of Gaza, according to WHO.
More than 44,500 Palestinians have been killed and more than 105,000 wounded by Israel’s bombardment and ground offensives, launched in retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel.
The casualty toll, by Gaza’s Health Ministry, does not distinguish combatants from civilians — but more than half are women and children.
Gaza’s health system has been decimated, with only 17 of the territory’s original 36 hospitals functioning — and those only partially.
They struggle with the waves of war wounded on top of patients with other conditions.
Carrying out specialized surgeries or treatments in Gaza is difficult or impossible, with equipment destroyed, some specialist doctors killed or arrested, and medical supplies limited.
Gaza’s only dedicated cancer hospital was seized by Israeli troops early in the war, heavily damaged, and has been shut down.
Doctors without Borders said in August it sought to evacuate 32 children along with their caregivers, but only six were allowed to leave. In November, it applied for eight others, including a 2-year-old with leg amputations, but Israeli authorities blocked evacuation, it said
The military official said five of the eight requests in November were approved, but the caregivers trying to travel with the children were rejected on security grounds.
The official said Doctors Without Borders would have to resubmit the requests with alternate escorts.
The official didn’t say why the other three children weren’t approved.
The rejected caregivers were the children’s mothers and grandmothers, said Mahmoud, the Doctor’s Without Borders official, who said no explanation was given for the security concern.
Children long waiting for permission face dire consequences if they don’t get treatment.
Nima Al-Askari said doctors told her that 4-year-old Qusay could become paralyzed if her son doesn’t get surgery in the next two or three months for a heart defect that constricts his aorta.
“Should I wait until my son becomes paralyzed?” Al-Askari said.
“Everyone is telling me to wait until he gets evacuated. ... This is my only son. I can’t see him in a wheelchair.”
Asma Saed said she has been waiting for three months to hear whether her 2-year-old son, Al-Hassan, can travel for treatment for kidney failure. In the meantime, they are living in a squalid tent camp in Khan Younis, with little clean water or food.
She said her son doesn’t sleep, screaming all night.
“I wish I could see him like any child in the world who can move, walk, and play,” she said.
“He’s a child. He can’t express his pain.”
Lebanese defense minister condemns Israeli truce violations
Ceasefire supervisory committee flies over South Litani sector
Lebanon closes land crossings with Syria as army patrols stop infiltrators
Updated 06 December 2024
NAJIA HOUSSARI
BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army will continue to cooperate with UNIFIL in southern Lebanon, government figures said on Friday in a meeting with visiting Italian officials.
Caretaker Defense Minister Maurice Slim highlighted Lebanon’s full adherence to UN Resolution 1701 during talks with his Italian counterpart, Guido Crosetto.
He condemned recent Israeli actions on Lebanese territory as a “blatant violation of the ceasefire terms.”
People cross through the destroyed crossing border point between Lebanon and Syria which hit by an Israeli airstrike, in Arida, north Lebanon, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (AP)
The meeting reviewed “military cooperation between Lebanon and Italy, along with the important role of the UNIFIL Italian contingent,” according to Slim’s office.
Crosetto briefed Slim on Italian efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon and “establish stability, particularly in the south, through existing cooperation between UNIFIL and the Lebanese Army.”
Italy “will continue to support the Lebanese Army by organizing further conferences to enhance its capabilities, especially during this critical stage,” said Crosetto.
BACKGROUND
Israel stepped up its campaign in south Lebanon in late September after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges begun by Hezbollah in support of Hamas following the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.
Slim said the Lebanese Army “will cooperate as much as possible with UNIFIL, particularly at this critical juncture, as the army plays a central role in maintaining security and stability in the south.”
Crosetto also met Lebanese Army Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun.
Italian Army Chief Gen. Luciano Portolano was also present.
They discussed “ways to strengthen cooperation between the two countries’ armies.”
The diplomatic efforts continued as Lebanon said it closed all land border crossings with Syria on Friday except for the central route linking Beirut to the Syrian capital, Damascus.
The General Security Directorate said the Masnaa crossing will remain open for entries and exits.
The decision follows a series of Israeli airstrikes that targeted Lebanese-Syrian border crossings on Friday morning.
Closing all but one border crossing will ensure the safety of civilians, the directorate said.
Public Works Ali Hamieh Minister told Reuters that the Israeli strikes targeted the Syrian side of the Aridah border crossing in the north and the Jousieh crossing on the eastern side.
According to Lebanon’s National News Agency, the Lebanese Army set up checkpoints and dispatched patrols amid strict measures and procedures.
The agency said that the army was intensively deployed along the border area in Akkar and other villages and towns adjacent to Syrian territory.
In parallel to the Lebanese security measures, rapid military developments were taking place in Syria.
Armed opposition factions were advancing toward the Homs governorate, close to the Lebanese border.
Fears of infiltration attempts into Lebanese territory and illegal immigration also mounted in Lebanon.
Lebanese Army Command said on Friday that “two army units, backed by two military intelligence units, arrested 36 Syrians, including 24 people detained at the Deir Ammar checkpoint in the north, for residing in Lebanon without legal documentation, as well as 12 others in Beit Al-Tashm, Hermel, for clandestinely entering the country.”
Israeli Army spokesperson Avichay Adraee claimed that Israel targeted Syrian routes used for transporting combat equipment, as well as infrastructure established near the border with Lebanon.
The ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel was signed more than a week ago but Israeli violations by air and land continue.
On Thursday night, Israeli drones and jets flew at low altitudes across Lebanese airspace, from Shebaa in the far south to Hermel in the far northeast, passing through Beirut and its southern suburb.
The number of Israeli violations exceeded 60 since the early hours of Nov. 27, resulting in the deaths of 15 people in a series of airstrikes, including one in Haris, which killed six civilians.
On Friday morning, Israeli military vehicles and tanks advanced into Aitaroun in the Bint Jbeil district.
Aitaroun had been subjected to extensive Israeli combing operations with medium-caliber machine guns during the night.
The Israeli Army had prohibited residents of the border area from returning until further notice, continuing the demolition of buildings, houses and facilities it had begun before the ceasefire.
Lebanese Army Command said that the five-party committee overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement, chaired by the US, would hold its first meeting early next week.
The committee conducted an aerial tour by helicopter over the South Litani sector and assessed the field situation.
It includes US Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, French Brig. Gen. Guillaume Ponchin, and Lebanese representative and commander of the South Litani sector, Brig. Gen. Edgar Lowndes.
