Lebanon braces for Israeli retaliation after deadly Golan Heights strike:-After Israel’s security cabinet authorized a military reaction to the rocket attack from Lebanon that occurred over the weekend, which resulted in the deaths of twelve people, all of whom were youngsters and teens, Lebanon prepared itself for a probable large-scale counterattack on Monday. There were considerable efforts made by diplomats at the very last minute to prevent a full-scale war from breaking out between Israel and Hezbollah.
As Israeli diplomats hurried to contain an escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli Prime Minister Binjamin Netanyahu pledged on Monday to respond with a “severe” response to an attack that resulted in the deaths of young people in the Golan Heights, which Israel has successfully seized.
During his visit to the location of the missile strike that resulted in the deaths of twelve children in the town of Majdal Shams, Netanyahu made the following statement: “The State of Israel will not as well as cannot allow this to occur.” There will be a prompt response from us, and it will be severe.
During his visit, he was met with demonstrations, which occurred after mourners had gathered in the Druze Arab town to bury the final victim, Guevara Ibrahim, who was 11 years old.
Since the beginning of the conflict in Gaza between Hamas militants and Israel in early October, Israel and the United States have placed the blame for the strike on the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon, which is supported by Iran. Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement has been exchanging fire with Israeli forces on an almost daily basis.
Abdallah Bou Habib, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lebanon, stated that a flurry of diplomatic activity has been undertaken in an effort to control the anticipated response from Israel.
Israel is going to show a limited amount of aggression, and Hezbollah is going to show a limited amount of response… “These are the assurances that we have received,” Bou Habib stated in an interview with Al-Jadeed, a local network.
The Israeli government is terrified of having to fight battles on two fronts, according to a number of analysts who spoke with AFP. This is likely to be the case.
According to Habib, the United States of America, France, and other countries were attempting to bring the escalation under control. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, stated that “talks are ongoing with international, European, and Arab sides to protect Lebanon and ward off dangers.”
One of the spokesman for the National Security Council at the White House, John Kirby, stated on Monday that he was “confident” that a more extensive war could be avoided.
“A great mistake with heavy consequences,” Iran’s new President Masoud Pezeshkian advised Israel against striking Lebanon. He stated that such an attack would be “a great mistake with heavy consequences.” Iran is a country that supports both Hezbollah and Hamas.
Pezeshkian had a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday. According to the Elysee Palace, Macron informed his counterpart that “all must be done to avoid a military escalation” and encouraged Tehran to “cease its support for destabilizing actors.” Pezeshkian was given the opportunity to speak with Macron.
Despite the fact that Hezbollah has denied responsibility for the missile attack on Majdal Shams, the group has claimed that it carried out other attacks on Israeli military positions on that identical day.
Israel has claimed that Hezbollah has launched an Iranian Falaq-1 rocket. According to an analyst, this kind of projectile is unguided, and they are considered to be inaccurate weapons.
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Gaza battles
According to a statement released by Netanyahu’s office on Sunday, Israel’s security cabinet “authorized the prime minister and the defense minister to decide on the manner and timing of the response.”
As reported by AFP, Hezbollah has withdrawn from several areas in the south and east of Lebanon, according to a source close to the organization.
In response to the death of two of its members, Hezbollah announced on Monday that it had fired “dozens of Katyusha rockets” at a military installation in Israel.
Subsequently, the organization asserted that they had carried out additional attacks against military outposts in the northern region of Israel. According to the official Lebanese media, a Syrian national passed away as a result of injuries sustained as a result of an Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon.
Already, the violence that has occurred across the border has resulted in the deaths of over 500 people in Lebanon, the majority of whom were fighters, as well as scores of civilians and troops on the Israeli side.
The Palestinian militants launched their assault on southern Israel on October 7, which marked the beginning of the conflict in Gaza. Hezbollah has stated that its assaults are in support of Hamas and that they will end if a truce is struck in Gaza.
In spite of the fact that mediators and Israeli negotiators gathered on Sunday in Rome to discuss the most recent proposal, the ceasefire and hostage release agreement that has been sought after for months has not been successful thus far.
“The negotiations on the main issues will continue in the coming days,” said a statement issued by the Israeli government.
Hamas, on the other hand, once more accused Netanyahu of being a barrier to discussions. The organization is quoted as saying in a statement that he has imposed new requirements, which constitutes “a retreat” from an earlier draft.
On the ground in Gaza, the Israeli military stated that its forces were continuing “precise” operations in the Rafah area and in Khan Yunis, which is located nearby. According to the Israeli military, troops have “eliminated dozens of terrorists” through their actions.
According to the military, Israeli aircraft attacked 35 targets across Gaza in a span of twenty-four hours.
According to the armed wing of Hamas, its militants were “engaging” Israeli troops in the Tal al-Hawa sector of Gaza City, where witnesses reported bombardment. This development occurred in the northern part of the territory.
Soldiers detained
According to an AFP tally that was based on official Israeli numbers, the offensive that Hamas launched against southern Israel, which was the initial spark that ignited the war, resulted in the deaths of 1,197 individuals, the majority of whom were civilians.
There are also 251 hostages that have been taken by militants, 111 of whom are currently being kept captive in Gaza, including 39 that the IDF claims have been killed.
Israel’s retaliatory military operation in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of at least 39,363 individuals, according to the health ministry in the region that is controlled by Hamas. However, the ministry does not disclose any information regarding the fatalities of civilians or militants.
Abuse of Palestinians while they were in Israeli detention has been accused by rights advocates, United Nations agencies, and other organizations ever since the war began. A facility that is known to be housing Palestinians arrested from Gaza is the location where nine soldiers are being kept for questioning in connection with a case of suspected abuse of a detainee, according to a statement released by the Israeli military on Monday.
Following the announcement of the military’s most recent evacuation order for portions of central Gaza late on Sunday night, Palestinians were instructed to relocate to a designated safe zone located close to Khan Yunis.
The Israeli military would “operate forcefully” against militants in the region of the Al-Bureij refugee camp, according to the statement, following rocket fire from that location.
As of Monday, witnesses said that hundreds of people were leaving the neighborhood.