Live blog: Deadly Israeli raids hit central Beirut amid bloody day in Gaza

Thursday, October 10, 2024

1952 GMT — Lebanon's health ministry raised the toll of Israeli strikes on Beirut to 22 killed and 117 injured -- the deadliest attacks in the centre of the capital since Israel escalated its war last month.

"The Israeli enemy's attacks on the capital Beirut this evening resulted in a new toll of 22 people killed and 117 injured," the ministry said in a statement.

There was no immediate statement from the Israeli military.

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1936 GMT — UN urges Israel to end bombardment of Lebanon, withdraw ground forces

UN Political Affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo warned of the "alarming" situation in Lebanon, as she urged Israel to end airstrikes and withdraw troops.

"Since the commencement of Israeli ground operations into Lebanon on 1 October, Hizbullah and the Israel Defense Forces have been engaged in intensified clashes in southern Lebanon," DiCarlo said at a UN Security Council session on Lebanon.

Emphasizing the escalating "humanitarian emergency" caused by exchanges of fire, she said: "The number of dead and wounded has spiraled: over 300 people have been killed in Lebanon just in the past week."

1929 GMT — Israeli army raids Nour Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem, northern West Bank

The Israeli army raided the Nour Shams refugee camp in the northern occupied West Bank, besieging it amid intense clashes with Palestinian fighters.

When the Israeli army stormed the camp in the city of Tulkarem, armed confrontations erupted between Palestinian fighters and the invading forces, an Anadolu correspondent reported.

A bomb was detonated in an Israeli bulldozer at the entrance to the camp, the correspondent added.

Israeli military bulldozers began demolishing streets and infrastructure within the camp, he said.

1912 GMT — Hezbollah thwarts Israeli infiltration attempts into southern Lebanon, hits northern Israel in counterattack

Hezbollah said to have thwarted Israeli infiltration attempts into southern Lebanon and struck multiple targets in northern Israel in a counterattack.

Hezbollah stated in a series of statements on Telegram by 1450GMT that it "targeted an Israeli tank with guided missiles as it advanced towards the town of Ras al-Naqoura, resulting in its burning and destruction, and casualties among its crew."

It later stated that it "fired three missile volleys at Israeli forces attempting to advance to evacuate the injured from the destroyed tank."

1845 GMT — 3 Israeli army majors killed in clashes with Palestinian fighters in northern Gaza

Three Israeli army majors were killed in clashes with fighters from Palestinian resistance forces in northern Gaza, the army announced.

The Israeli army said in a statement that three reservist officers were killed during clashes with Palestinian fighters in northern Gaza.

The three casualties were reserve officers with the rank of major from Logistical Support Unit 5460, which is part of the Israeli 460th Armored "Bnei Or" brigade, the statement said.

1840 GMT — Lebanon facing 'indescribable' humanitarian crisis: Doctors Without Borders

Lebanon is grappling with a "devastating and indescribable" humanitarian crisis as Israel continues its air and ground attacks, according to the medical coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Lebanon.

Speaking to Anadolu, Luna Hammad reported that over one million people have been displaced from areas affected by bombing and violence, including southern Lebanon, the Bekaa Valley, and the southern Beirut suburbs.

"Many people are living in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, facing severe challenges," Hammad said.

"Even basic necessities like clean water, food, and sanitation facilities are crucial to prevent disease outbreaks are not available," she added.

1750 GMT — Israeli strike kills 5 Palestinians in Gaza neighbourhood

Five Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a group in northern Gaza City.

A medical source at the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital said the facility reported five deaths as a result of the bombing that hit the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood.

An Israeli drone targeted a group of Palestinians near the Omar Mosque close to the Al-Ghazali junction, resulting in the deaths, according to witnesses.

1730 GMT — Israel bombing Gaza randomly, not according to plan: Jordanian general

A retired Jordanian general said Israel’s bombing of northern Gaza is not part of a so-called "Generals' Plan," as reported by several outlets, but rather a series of "random" bombings.

Kasid Ahmed said in an interview with Anadolu that Israel's “genocidal” actions in northern Gaza are meant to forcibly relocate Palestinians to the insecure al-Mawasi area, located further west, as part of a larger Zionist project.

The Israeli military this Monday encouraged Palestinians in northern Gaza, specifically Beit Hanoun, Jabaliya, and Beit Lahiya, to leave their homes and move to the al-Mawasi area, which it claimed is "safe." Israel has several times pushed Palestinians into so-called “safe zones” in which they again found themselves pounded by Israeli attacks.

1650 GMT — Israeli military enforces total blockade on northern Gaza, says civil defense official

Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza, reported that the Israeli army has instituted a “complete siege” on northern Gaza, effectively cutting it off from Gaza City and neighboring areas.

Basal informed Anadolu that the Israeli blockade stretches from the al-Tawam area in the west to Salah al-Din Street in the east. He noted that armed drones and ground vehicles from the Israeli military are targeting anything that moves within these zones.

1620 GMT — Israel to confiscate UNRWA headquarters in East Jerusalem for settlement units

Israel has decided to confiscate the headquarters of the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank to build illegal settlement units on its site, according to media reports.

“According to information released to the public today, the entire UNRWA area in Ma'alot Dafna, Jerusalem, is slated to become a housing project with 1,440 units,” the Israel Hayom newspaper reported.

It noted that the project is in the “preparatory stages.”

UNRWA had not commented on the report.

1550 GMT — 13 killed in fresh Israeli air strikes in Lebanon

At least 13 Lebanese, including children, were killed and others injured in fresh Israeli airstrikes on houses in southern and eastern Lebanon on Thursday, local media said.

State news agency NNA said nine people, including children, lost their lives when an Israeli warplane hit a building in Karak in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.

Red Cross and civil defense teams are searching the rubble for survivors, the broadcaster said.

1315 GMT — Israel fires at UNIFIL in Lebanon, Qassam ambushes army in Gaza

Israeli troops opened fire at three positions held by UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, a UN source told Reuters, without immediately being able to specify the type of fire.

The source said one of the locations that was fired at was UNIFIL's main base at Naqoura.

"Three positions were hit by fire and two peacekeepers were injured," a UNIFIL spokeswoman said, after Lebanon's official National News Agency said.

In southern Gaza, Hamas’s military wing, Qassam Brigades, have targeted an Israeli reconnaissance patrol consisting of two vehicles and four soldiers using an attack drone in Khan Younis, according to a statement on the resistance group’s official Telegram channel.

1123 GMT — Israeli forces fired tank shell at UN peacekeeper position in Lebanon, UN source says

Israeli forces fired a tank shell at a watchtower used by UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon on Wednesday, one of three cases in the last 24 hours of the peacekeeping force's positions coming under Israeli fire, a UN source told Reuters.

Two peacekeepers with the UNIFIL peacekeeping force were injured, but not seriously, after the watchtower at the force's main base in Naqoura was fired upon, the source said.

There were no casualties in the other two incidents - one on Wednesday and the other on Thursday. In both cases, UNIFIL positions came under Israeli small arms fire, the source said.

1104 GMT — Death toll from Israeli strike on Gaza school-turned-shelter tops 28

An Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced people in central Gaza killed at least 28 people, including women and children, while three hospitals in the north were told to evacuate putting patients' lives at risk, medics say.

1058 GMT — The death toll from Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza reaches 42,065

At least 55 more Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza, bringing the overall death toll since last year to 42,065, the Health Ministry in the enclave said.

A ministry statement added that some 97,886 others were injured in the ongoing assault.

“Israeli forces killed 55 people and injured 166 others in five massacres of families in the last 24 hours,” the ministry said.

1036 GMT — Lebanon says diplomatic communications intensified to reach ceasefire

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said diplomatic communications have intensified ahead of a UN Security Council session to reach a temporary ceasefire with Israel.

“There are ongoing contacts between the US and France, which called the Security Council session, to revive efforts for a temporary cease-fire declaration to pave the way for political solutions,” Mikati said in a statement released by his office.

“We have reiterated during the diplomatic contacts that we are ready to implement UN Resolution 1701 provided that Israel abides by all its provisions," Mikati said.

0947 GMT — Lebanon's Hezbollah says destroys Israeli tank advancing on southern border

Lebanon's Hezbollah said it destroyed an Israeli tank advancing on Lebanon's southern border.

The Iran-backed group fired rockets at "an Israeli tank as it advanced towards Ras al-Naqura, leading to its burning and destruction," it said, claiming casualties.

0932 GMT — Israeli strike on a Gaza shelter kills at least 21 people: Palestinian officials

An Israeli strike on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza has killed at least 21 people, with the toll likely to rise, Palestinian medical officials said.

The Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where the bodies were brought, confirmed the toll from the strike in the central town of Deir al Balah.

It said several other people were wounded in the strike.

0929 GMT — Israel arrests 22 more Palestinians in West Bank raids

The Israeli army has detained 22 more Palestinians in military raids in the occupied West Bank, according to prisoners’ affairs groups.

A journalist and two children were among the detainees in the raids that targeted the cities of Hebron, Bethlehem, occupied East Jerusalem, and Ramallah, the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a joint statement.

“The arrests were marked by abuse, threats against detainees and their families, and acts of vandalism and destruction on citizens' homes,” the statement said.

The new arrests brought the total number of Palestinians detained by the Israeli army in the occupied West Bank since October last year to over 11,200.

0920 GMT — Kremlin says expansion of Middle East conflict is having catastrophic consequences

The expanding geographical sweep of the conflict in the Middle East to Lebanon is having catastrophic consequences for the region, the Kremlin has said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov made the comments when asked about the possibility of Israel preparing for military action in Syria, a close Russian ally.

0549 GMT — Israeli forces storm Al Fara refugee camp, target medical crews

The Israeli military has continued raids in Al Fara refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, since midnight last night, with additional reinforcements arriving from the Al Hamra military checkpoint, according to reports from the Palestinian News Agency WAFA.

WAFA correspondent on the ground reported that the Israeli forces have deployed heavily throughout the camp, including snipers and infantry units.

Israeli soldiers have reportedly raided multiple homes, conducting searches and detaining several residents.

In the midst of these raids, Israeli forces opened fire randomly, escalating tensions within the camp.

During the raid, the Israeli military reportedly targeted ambulance crews, with the Red Crescent confirming that live bullets were fired at their ambulance point, WAFA added.

0730 GMT –– Israel kills 130 as Jabalia siege in North Gaza enters 5th day

Residents of Jabalia Refugee Camp in northern Gaza have endured five consecutive days of intense Israeli bombardment, including a land blockade, destruction of homes, and forced displacement.

The health system Jabalia faces increasing strain, with Israeli forces ordering the evacuation of key hospitals, including Kamal Adwan, Indonesian, and Al-Awda hospitals, giving them 24 hours to comply.

That deadline ends today.

This marks the third ground invasion into Jabalia since the beginning of the Israeli war on Gaza that began on October 7, 2023.

On Sunday, the Israeli military announced the start of its ground offensive in Jabalia, following intense air strikes on the eastern and western parts of northern Gaza, described as some of the heaviest since May.

At least 130 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks in this week, the government media office said.

On Monday, residents of Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahia were warned by Israeli forces to evacuate and move to the southern part of Gaza.

Meanwhile, areas in Beit Lahia, Al-Tawam, and Al-Atatra have been subjected to continued air, sea, and land bombardment.

According to official Palestinian reports, about 700,000 of the 1.2 million residents in Gaza's northern areas have chosen to stay despite the evacuation orders.

Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli forces had encircled the Jabalia camp area, with ground incursions taking place Thursday morning.

0532 GMT — Attack damages ship off Yemen coast: UK maritime agency

A ship has been struck and damaged by an "unknown projectile" off Yemen, a British maritime agency has said, following months of attacks by Houthis.

"The master of the vessel reports being hit by an unknown projectile and the vessel has sustained damage, no fires or casualties reported," said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which is run by the British Navy.

0517 GMT — Israeli officer killed in fighting at Southern Lebanon

Israeli officer killed, soldier injured in fighting in southern Lebanon, Israeli public broadcaster KAN has reported.

0129 GMT — Iraq condemns Israeli media for listing top Shia cleric as target

The Iraqi government has condemned Israeli media for placing Ali al Sistani, the top religious authority for Shia Muslims in Iraq, on a target list, saying the act threatens international peace and security.

Israel’s Channel 14 broadcast an image of Sistani, claiming that he was on Israel’s target list.

In a statement, Iraqi government spokesman Basim al Awadi strongly condemned any violation of the revered status of the country’s top religious authority.

0107 GMT — Thousands of Moroccan students protest in solidarity with Gaza, Lebanon amid Israeli offensives

Thousands of students have staged protests at several Moroccan universities in solidarity with Gaza and Lebanon as Israel’s genocidal war entered its second year.

The protests coincided with a one-day strike across universities nationwide demanding an end to the normalisation of relations between Morocco and Israel.

The strike was called by the National Union of Moroccan Students, the largest student faction in the country.

0029 GMT — Syria state media reports Israeli attack on Homs, Hama provinces

Syrian state media reported an Israeli attack early on Thursday on the central provinces of Homs and Hama after an Israeli strike hit the country's south the previous day.

"At around 1:00 am (2200 GMT Wednesday), the Israeli enemy launched an air attack... targeting a car assembly factory in the industrial area of Hassia in Homs province" and a military position in Hama, state news agency SANA said, citing a military source.

Hassia is about 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of the city of Hama.

"The losses were limited to material damage," the report said.

2129 GMT — Israeli air strike on tents in North Gaza kills 16 Palestinians

Israel has killed at least 16 people and wounded others in its air strikes near Yemen al-Saeed Hospital in the northern besieged Gaza.

Hossam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, told Anadolu Agency that the victims were killed when an Israeli warplane targeted displaced people's tents outside the hospital.

Paramedics said the dead included women and children, noting that the bombardment left "charred remains of the deceased Palestinians."

Later, several Palestinians were killed and wounded in a second air strike targeting displaced people outside the entrance of the hospital, the Gaza Civil Defense reported.

2104 GMT — Israel kills 10, including 5 medics, in southern Lebanon

Israel has killed at least ten people, including five medics, and wounded dozens of others in southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese Civil Defense said in a statement that five of its workers were killed in the Israeli air strike on the Civil Defense centre in Derdghaya, the town of the Tyre district in the southern governorate.

It said the victims were on duty at the centre and ready to respond to emergency calls.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's Ministry of Health reported that an Israeli air strike on the town of Wardaniyeh in the same district killed five people and wounded 12 others but did not specify the severity of their injuries.

The ministry added that "remains of other victims are being identified through DNA testing."

2016 GMT — UNRWA chief calls Gaza 'unrecognisable'

Besieged Gaza has been "unrecognisable", and there is no end in sight to the Israeli violence engulfing the Middle East, the head of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said.

"One year after the catastrophic war on Gaza, no end is in sight to the brutal violence engulfing the region," Philippe Lazzarini said at a Security Council meeting on the situation in the Palestinian enclave.

"It has been a year of profound loss and suffering," he said. "We cannot claim ignorance to what is happening — nor can we afford to look away. That is why we repeat our calls for the Security Council, and member states, to take action."

For our live updates from Wednesday, October 9, 2024, click here.