Middle East
Lebanon conflict pushes Gaza truce out of focus
Palestinians fear the crisis in Lebanon is diverting the world’s attention from Gaza, where Israeli strikes killed dozens more people this week, and diminishing already dim prospects for a ceasefire a year into an offensive that has shattered the enclave.
Lebanon invasion / How might Israel strike back against Iran?
Israel has sworn it will retaliate for Iran’s missile barrage on Tuesday, which involved more than 180 ballistic missiles and was largely thwarted by Israel’s air defense systems. Below are some ways Israel, backed by the United States, could strike back.
Iran’s allies will keep fighting Israel
Iran’s supreme leader yesterday vowed in a rare address that his allies around the region would keep fighting Israel, as he defended his country’s missile strike on its arch-foe.
US President Biden does not believe there will be 'all-out-war' in Middle East
U.S. President Joe Biden said he did not believe there is going to be an "all-out war" in the Middle East, as Israel weighs options for retaliation after Tehran's largest ever assault on its arch-enemy.
Israel strikes Beirut, south Lebanon
Israel’s military urged residents of more than 20 towns in south Lebanon to evacuate their homes immediately yesterday as it pressed on with incursions after suffering its worst losses in a year of fighting the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah.
Food aid to Gaza falls as Israel sets new rule
Food supplies to Gaza have fallen sharply in recent weeks because Israeli authorities have introduced a new customs rule on some humanitarian aid and are separately scaling down deliveries organized by businesses, people involved in getting goods to the territory told Reuters.
Iran warned Nasrallah of Israeli plot to kill him
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Hezbollah leader Syyed Hassan Nasrallah to flee Lebanon days before he was killed in an Israeli strike and is now deeply worried about Israeli infiltration of senior government ranks in Tehran, three Iranian sources said.
ISRAEL-HEZBOLLAH CONFLICT / Hezbollah losses strengthen Turkey against Iran: analysts
Israel’s onslaught against Hezbollah in Lebanon is reassuring for Turkey, which could seize the opportunity to strengthen its regional influence in the face of its rival Iran, analysts told AFP.
Iran denies it had role in Hamas attack on Israel
Iran on Monday rejected as unfounded allegations it had a role in the massive assault on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
How Israel was duped as Hamas planned devastating assault
A careful campaign of deception ensured Israel was caught off guard when the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched its devastating attack, enabling a force using bulldozers, hang gliders and motorbikes to take on the Middle East's most powerful army.
China says 'opposes and condemns' actions that harm civilians in Israel violence
China said Monday it "opposes and condemns" violence against civilians in Israel and the Palestinian territories
Bank of Israel to sell $30 billion of forex to stabilise shekel amid Gaza war
The Bank of Israel said on Monday it will sell up to $30 billion of foreign currency in the open market, in the central bank's first ever sale of foreign exchange, to maintain stability during Israel's war with Palestinian militants in Gaza
Fighting with Hamas ongoing in 'seven to eight' locations around Gaza: Israel army
Fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas Palestinian militants was ongoing Monday in seven to eight locations around the Gaza Strip inside Israel, the army said
Two Israelis, one Egyptian shot dead in Alexandria
Two Israeli tourists and their Egyptian guide were shot dead yesterday in the Egyptian city of Alexandria, Israeli foreign ministry said.
Hamas forces detour from Saudi-Israel momentum
With its surprise attack against Israel, Hamas has violently shifted the world’s eyes back to the Palestinians and dealt a severe blow to momentum to secure a landmark US-brokered deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
‘It was a security failure’
As Israel reeled from a deadly attack by Hamas who broke through barriers around Gaza and roamed at will, killing scores of civilians in Israeli towns, defence chiefs faced growing questions over how the disaster could have happened.
Gaza bleeds as Israel pounds enclave
Israel battered Gaza yesterday after suffering its bloodiest attack in decades, as Hamas fighters rampaged through Israeli towns killing 600 and abducting dozens more.
Israel strikes Lebanon after Hezbollah hits Shebaa Farms
Israel fired barrages of artillery into southern Lebanon on Sunday after Hezbollah targeted three Israeli military positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms