Page 2 - Lebanon

India condemns attack on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, seeks accountability

India has condemned the attack on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon that killed a Serbian Blue Helmet and injured two others, and called for an immediate and thorough investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice. Sergeant Milovan Jovanovic, a Serbian peacekeeper serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), was killed when a mortar struck a UN position near Marji'yun in Sector East of the mission's area of operations on Wednesday. Two other peacekeepers from Spain and El Salvador were injured and are undergoing treatment at a UNIFIL medical facility in south Lebanon, the UN said. "Our sincere condolences to Serbia and to the family of the Serbian Blue Helmet of UNIFIL who was killed in this deplorable attack," India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni said in a social media post on Thursday. Blue Helmets refers to military personnel, police officers, and civilian experts serving under the operational command of the Uni

Hezbollah rejects ceasefire accord as strikes kill four in Lebanon

Hezbollah on Thursday rejected the latest ceasefire agreement reached between Israel and the Lebanese government, demanding a complete Israeli withdrawal. The announcement came as Israeli strikes killed at least four people, according to local authorities, and a UN peacekeeper was killed in the crossfire. Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem, in a written statement read on TV, said the agreement's demand that Hezbollah fighters leave southern Lebanon under fire would mean "surrender, defeat and achieving the enemy's goals." "What we are concerned about is an end to the aggression, ceasefire and Israel's withdrawal," he said. "We did not make any commitment to any party to stop resisting as long as there is occupation," he added. The ongoing fighting in Lebanon, where Israeli forces have seized large swaths of the south, threatens efforts to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for oil and gas whose closure has jolted the world economy. Iran has demanded tha

Israel, Lebanon renew ceasefire, agree to Hezbollah-free security zones

Israel and Lebanon have agreed to renew their fragile ceasefire and create a number of "pilot" security zones inside Lebanon from which Hezbollah militants would be banned. In a joint statement released after a fourth round of US-mediated talks at the State Department, the two sides said the ceasefire "is contingent on a complete cessation of Hezbollah fire and the evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives" from areas south of the Litani River. It was not immediately clear how the security zones would be established but the agreement calls for the Lebanese army to take full control of those areas. "These steps will enable progress towards a comprehensive peace and security agreement," the statement said. "All countries reaffirmed that the future of the relationship between Israel and Lebanon must be decided by the two sovereign governments. They rejected any attempt, by any state or non-state actor, to hold Lebanon's future hostage." The latter is a reference to Iran, which supports

Strait of Hormuz to reopen 'immediately' once Iran deal is signed: Trump

US President also indicated his preference to keep the issue of reopening the strait separate from the continuing conflict in Lebanon, which has seen intensive Israeli strikes in the southern parts

What is Beaufort Castle, Lebanon's Crusade-era fortress seized by Israel

Perched above the Litani gorge, the 12th-century fortress played a key role during the Crusades and has remained strategically important through successive conflicts in southern Lebanon

'Everybody hates Israel now': Trump tells Netanyahu in call over Lebanon

According to a US official cited by Axios, Trump expressed immense frustration over what he perceived as a disproportionate military response to Hezbollah's strikes on Israel

Lebanon announces partial Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire as fighting continues

Early on Tuesday, the Israeli military said that it intercepted two projectiles that crossed from Lebanon into northern Israel, and that no injuries were reported

Will strike Beirut if Hezbollah attacks persist: Netanyahu tells Trump

The precise parameters of the tentative truce publicised by Trump continue to be shrouded in ambiguity, driven by contrasting signals emerging from Washington, Jerusalem, Hezbollah, and Beirut

Iran halts talks with US after Israel widens Lebanon offensive: Report

Negotiators will suspend "talks and the exchange of documents through mediators" the semi-official Tasnim new agency reported, citing a statement

US proposes new plan to ease Israel-Lebanon tensions amid fighting

In the latest advance, Israeli troops seized the 900-year-old Beaufort Castle and a strategic ridge in southern Lebanon, the military said earlier on Sunday

Oil prices climb over 2% as Israel intensifies operations in Lebanon

US crude futures rose $2.37 or 2.71 per cent to $89.73 a barrel as of 0028 GMT

Germany, UK voice concern over Israel's widening offensive in Lebanon

United Kingdom intensified the Western diplomatic push for immediate restraint, explicitly calling for a halt to the widening theatre of war

What to know as Israeli forces' Lebanon incursion complicates Iran deal

Israeli forces are making their deepest incursion inside Lebanon since they withdrew from the country over a quarter-century ago, despite a nominal U.S.-brokered ceasefire and the first direct talks between the countries in decades. The Israeli advance presents a challenge in the emerging deal to extend the Iran war ceasefire as Tehran wants any agreement to end fighting in Lebanon, too. Qatar called it a "dangerous escalation." Germany's foreign minister said it was cause for serious concern, according to German press agency dpa. There was no comment by the United States. On Sunday, Israeli forces seized a symbolic fort in southern Lebanon that offers commanding views across Lebanon and into northern Israel. The last time they seized it, they held it for 18 years. Israel says it is targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, which has a strong political presence in southern Lebanon and has launched thousands of missiles and drones at Israeli soldiers there and in norther

Israel seizes Lebanon's Beaufort castle in its deepest incursion in 26 yrs

Israeli troops have captured a strategic mountain topped with a Crusader-built castle in southern Lebanon in their deepest incursion into the country in more than a quarter century, the military said Sunday. The capture of Beaufort castle near the city of Nabatiyeh came after days of intense fighting and airstrikes in nearby villages where Israeli troops fought Hezbollah members in the rugged area. It marks a major gain for Israel in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war, which began in early March. Israel and Lebanon have been at war since Israel was created in 1948, and are currently holding direct talks in Washington. The Israeli push came despite a nominal ceasefire that has been in place since April 17 and just days before the next round of talks are set to be held at the State Department on June 2 and 3. The Israeli army's Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee posted a photograph on X showing Israeli troops walking outside the castle, and Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X that t

Israel, Lebanon agree to 45-day extension of ceasefire after US talks

Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 45-day extension of their ceasefire after another round of talks in Washington, the US State Department said Friday. It comes after two "productive" days of talks, and will be followed by more negotiations June 2-3, State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said. A shaky truce between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon had been due to end on Sunday. "We hope these discussions will advance lasting peace between the two countries, full recognition of each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and establishing genuine security along their shared border," Pigott said on social media.

Israel-Lebanon hold 3rd round of talks as fighting with Hezbollah continues

A third round of direct talks between Israel and Lebanon kicked off in Washington Thursday, days before the expiration of a truce that reduced but did not stop the fighting between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Lebanese officials are hoping that the two-day negotiations will yield a new ceasefire deal and pave the way for tackling a series of thorny issues, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah. The Trump administration has been pushing for a breakthrough between the two neighbours that have been officially in a state of war since Israel was created in 1948. Hezbollah, however, is not part of those talks and has been vocally opposed to Lebanon engaging in direct negotiations with Israel. Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group have continued to trade near-constant fire across the border despite a US-brokered ceasefire on April 17. Initially a 10-day truce, it was then extended for another three ...

Israeli drone strikes on vehicles in Lebanon kill 12, including 2 children

Israeli airstrikes Wednesday struck seven vehicles in Lebanon - three of them on the main highway just south of Beirut - killing 12 people including a woman and her two children, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in several areas in southern Lebanon, hours after telling residents of six southern villages to evacuate. Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to hold another round of direct talks in Washington on Thursday as the Trump administration pushes for a breakthrough between the two neighbours that have been in a state of war since Israel was created in 1948. The United Nations has also accused Hezbollah of drone strikes near its peacekeeping forces in southern Lebanon, and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' message to both sides is that they must observe the ceasefire and stop all attacks, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said. The Health Ministry confirmed the seven airstrikes on vehicles, but didn't provide full detai

Netanyahu orders IDF strikes in Beirut targeting Hezbollah commander

The strikes come amid an ongoing ceasefire framework between Israel and Lebanon

Hezbollah adopts new weapon: Fibre-optic drones, used widely in Ukraine war

Hezbollah has launched a new weapon against northern Israel in the latest round of fighting: small drones controlled with fibre-optic cables the width of dental floss that avoid electronic detection. These drones - used widely in the war in Ukraine - are small, hard to track and potentially lethal. Many drones are susceptible to electronic jamming by air defences. Jamming can cause a drone to crash or return to its point of origin. But fibre-optic drones are not controlled remotely. They have a thin cable that connects an operator directly to the drone, making it impossible to electronically jam. The drones are not infallible because the wind - or other drones - can cause the cables to tangle. But, "if you know what you're doing, it's absolutely deadly", said Robert Tollast, a drone expert and researcher at the Royal United Services Institute in London, explaining how the drone can fly low and creep up on a target. Experts say militaries must either intercept the drones, which is

Israel, Hezbollah exchange strikes despite ceasefire extension with Lebanon

The Israel Defence Forces said it carried out strikes on Hezbollah rocket launchers in the southern Lebanese towns of Yater and Kafra