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Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah on Friday said that Israel “thought that it targeted key weapons with a harsh and painful strike before realizing that it bombed its shadow.”
Fadlallah was referring to Israel’s claim that it waged a preemptive strike to foil Hezbollah’s retaliation to Fouad Shukur’s killing, an allegation that was dismissed by Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, who said that Israel staged its airstrikes half an hour before his group launched over 300 rockets and several drones into Israel.
Full StoryThe five-nation committee for Lebanon is expected to resume its efforts soon regarding the country’s presidential election file, media reports said on Friday.
The quintet comprises representatives of the U.S., France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt.
Full StoryA broader regional war in the Middle East where conflict already rages between Hamas and Israel remains a "significant risk," the head of the U.N. peacekeeping force warned Friday.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix warned against making assumptions about how regional actors will behave.
Full StoryIsraeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has presented the security cabinet with a document strongly advocating for a hostage-ceasefire deal and an addition to the war goals: the return of evacuees to their homes in northern Israel.
"Over the past 11 months, we have faced attacks from seven different fronts and responded effectively. In Gaza, we have defeated most of Hamas' brigades and battalions, including their military leader, Mohammad Deif, along with numerous other terrorists," Gallant noted, according to Israeli reports.
Full StoryThe European Union (EU) is continuing its partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Lebanon to ensure that the most vulnerable women and girls have access to affordable, accessible, and lifesaving sexual and reproductive health services, the EU and the UNFPA said in a joint statement Friday.
In partnership with local partners Amel, Salama, Nabaa, and Society for Inclusion and Development in Communities (SIDC), UNFPA is supporting six primary health centers, two dispensaries, and a safe shelter for women and girls across Lebanon to provide integrated gender-based-violence (GBV) prevention and response services while enhancing access to inclusive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services for 42,420 people in need.
Full StoryHezbollah's retaliation to the killing of one of its top commanders Fouad Shukur was successful, sources told pro-Hezbollah al-Mayadeen news channel and al-Akhbar newspaper.
The sources told al-Mayadeen, in remarks published late Thursday, that Hezbollah has succeeded in the targeting of an intelligence base just outside Tel Aviv last Sunday.
Full StoryIsraeli warplanes raided overnight into Friday the outskirts of Tayrharfa, Yaroun, Zebqine, al-Naqoura and Wadi Hamoul in south Lebanon.
The Israeli army also shelled with flare and incendiary bombs villages along the border, including al-Naqoura and Alma al-Shaab.
Full StoryHezbollah attacked Thursday a base in the occupied Golan Heights with an array of suicide drones in response to Wednesday's strikes on the Bekaa and al-Masnaa.
The Israeli army said that several drones have exploded in northern Golan, causing no casualties.
Full StoryA number of protesting depositors on Thursday torched the entrance of Banque Libano-Française (BLF) in the Dora area, trapping employees inside the bank.
Several citizens meanwhile rushed to remove their cars from the area to avoid the spread of flames to them.
Full StoryAlthough former President Michel Aoun stands against Hezbollah’s clashes with Israel on Lebanon’s southern border, the former president is still keen on maintaining good relations with the Iran-backed group.
Aoun told pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper, in remarks published Thursday, that he would be happy if Hezbollah won the war with Israel, although he opposes it. "I would celebrate with them if they won, and would be sad if, God forbid, they lost."
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