Live updates (closed)
The Times of Israel liveblogged Thursday’s events as they happened.
Despite impasse, Qatari official tells hostage families Doha committed to securing deal
Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, minister of state at Qatar's foreign ministry, attends the opening session of the Global Security Forum in Doha on May 20, 2024. (Karim Jaafar/AFP)
NEW YORK — The relatives of several American-Israeli hostages met yesterday with Qatari Minister of State Mohammed Al-Khulaifi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly to discuss efforts being mediated by Doha to release their loved ones.
“The families stressed the urgent need to secure an agreement that will immediately release their loved ones and bring them home to their families,” says a joint statement from the families, adding that they “expressed their gratitude for Qatar’s continued mediation efforts.”
Talks have been stalled for over a month, with the US placing primary blame on Hamas, which executed six hostages and subsequently sought to increase the already-agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners slated for release.
Washington and other mediators have also criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the talks, particularly his decision in July to add a new demand that the IDF be allowed to remain in the Philadelphi Corridor during the first phase of the deal.
Despite the impasse, the Qatari minister of state told the hostage families yesterday that Doha remains committed to securing the release of their loved ones, Liz Hirsh Naftali, the great-aunt of released American hostage Abigail Mor Edan, tells The Times of Israel.
“This was not just a commitment that has no work behind it. They’re really working on this,” she asserts.
Notably, she reveals that Qatar is the only Arab country whose representatives in Washington have agreed to even meet with the American hostage families and have done so several times.
Meetings requests sent to the DC embassies of Egypt — which is also mediating the hostage talks — Turkey, Jordan, Bahrain, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have all gone unanswered, Naftali says.
Naftali says that Netanyahu promised her and the other American hostage families during their meeting with US President Joe Biden at the White House in July that he would work to bring about the rapid release of the hostages and not add additional conditions to the deal.
“He has not kept his commitment,” she laments, noting that the six hostages — including American Hersh Goldberg-Polin — were executed during the two months that lapsed.
Naftali asserts that a hostage deal would provide desperately needed calm and relief to a region on the brink of war.
Israeli envoy to expat protesters: I’ll push US Jewish groups to issue call backing hostage deal
Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog speaks during Israel's Independence Day reception, hosted by the Israeli embassy to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel, at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, June 6, 2023. (Saul Loeb/AFP)
Israel’s Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog met earlier this week with a group of Israeli expats who have been protesting outside of his Washington residence, two participants in the meeting tell The Times of Israel.
During the meeting, Herzog agreed to encourage executives of Jewish American organizations to issue a statement expressing support for a hostage release and ceasefire deal, the participants say, clarifying that the ambassador conditioned his support for the initiative on the statement not being political.
The meeting included representatives from UnXeptable DC, a Washington chapter of the group of Israeli expats founded to protest against the judicial overhaul being advanced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government last year. After October 7, the group shifted its focus to advocating for a hostage deal, and the DC chapter held weekly protests outside the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Since six hostages were executed by their Hamas captors at the beginning of the month, UnXeptable DC moved their weekly protests to Herzog’s residence, deeming it an appropriate address due to their frustration with what they see as the government’s repeated attempts to thwart a hostage deal.
Israeli expats and Jewish Americans protest for a hostage deal outside the Washington home of Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog in September 2024. (Yosef Hermony)
After several such demonstrations, members of the group managed to schedule a meeting with Herzog at the embassy on Tuesday.
UnXeptable DC activist Vered Guttman says the group is hoping that Herzog’s influence will push legacy Jewish American organizations to weigh in more firmly in favor of a hostage deal.
The Conference of Presidents, an umbrella body of legacy Jewish groups, issued a statement calling for the release of the hostages in July; but two months on, UnXeptable is hoping for an updated statement that issues a more direct call on the Israeli government to agree to the hostage deal being brokered by the US.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Herzog also expressed openness to a proposal from the demonstrators for the embassy to host a pair of town halls — one with members of the American Jewish community and another with Israeli expats based in the US to hear their views on the war in Gaza and other issues impacting their communities, the participants say.
In a subsequent statement to The Times of Israel, a spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy says, “Ambassador Herzog extended an invitation for a meeting at the Israeli Embassy to representatives of those who have been demonstrating weekly outside his residence in favor of a hostage deal. The goal of the meeting was to foster dialogue and engage in an open and direct conversation.”
US: We announced Lebanon ceasefire initiative because Netanyahu told us he was on board
National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 18, 2024. (Jim Watson/AFP)
The White House doubles down on its insistence that it coordinated ahead of time with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in its statement last night announcing an initiative for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
“We had every reason to believe that in the drafting of [the statement] and in the delivery of it that the Israelis were fully informed and fully aware of every word in it. We wouldn’t have done it if we didn’t believe that it would be received with the seriousness with which it was composed,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby says in a briefing with reporters.
A senior Western diplomat told The Times of Israel earlier today that Netanyahu and his aides were closely involved in crafting and approving the joint statement issued by the US and over a dozen other countries backing a 21-day ceasefire along the Blue Line, which aimed at providing time for both a hostage release and ceasefire deal in Gaza and an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah that sees the terror group withdraw its forces away from the border.
Asked if it is fair to say that the US wouldn’t have published the statement last night had it not believed that Israel was on board with the plan, Kirby responds in the affirmative.
Nonetheless, the White House still believes that it is possible to reach a diplomatic solution between Israel and Hezbollah and have continued talks with Israeli counterparts even after Netanyahu all but blew up their effort this morning.
Netanyahu rejected the idea of a ceasefire upon landing in New York earlier today, telling reporters that Israel would continue striking Hezbollah “with full force” and would not stop until its goals are achieved.
“We’ve seen Prime Minister Netanyahu’s comments. We still believe an all-out war is not the best way to get people back in their homes. If that’s the goal, we don’t believe an all-out war is the right way to do that,” Kirby says.
“I can’t speak for Prime Minister Netanyahu. I can’t answer why he said what he said… whether [the considerations] were political or operational or otherwise. Those are questions that he needs to be asked,” he adds.
France is against Lebanon ‘becoming a new Gaza’ — Macron
French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau walk on a dock of the harbor on September 26, 2024 in Montreal. (Ludovic Marin/AFP)
France opposes Lebanon “becoming a new Gaza,” French President Emmanuel Macron says during a visit to Canada, citing the “absolutely shocking” number of civilian casualties.
“Israel must stop its strikes and Hezbollah must stop its retaliating,” Macron tells a joint news conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Since Israel escalated its airstrikes on the Hezbollah terror group on Monday, more than 630 people have been killed in Lebanon, according to the country’s health ministry.
At least a quarter of those killed have been women and children, according to Lebanese health officials. More than 2,000 were wounded.
Israel has said that many Hezbollah operatives are among the dead.
Earlier, Macron posted on X, “There must be no war in Lebanon. We strongly urge Israel to stop the escalation in Lebanon, Hezbollah to cease firing towards Israel, and all those providing them with the means to do so to stop.”
IDF: Jets struck some 220 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon today, including rocket launchers, weapons depots
Israeli fighter jets struck some 220 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon today, the IDF says.
The targets included buildings used by the terror group, rocket launchers used in attacks on northern Israel, weapon depots, and operatives, according to the military.
The strikes were carried out in both southern Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley.
The military releases footage of some of the strikes.
מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר, בהכוונת פיקוד הצפון תקפו במהלך היממה האחרונה כ-220 מטרות טרור של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בלבנון.
בין המטרות שהותקפו, מבנים צבאיים, משגרים שביצעו ירי לעבר שטח מדינת ישראל, מחבלים ומחסני אמצעי לחימה של הארגון בעומק ובדרום לבנון >> pic.twitter.com/uFU8vlf7EC— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 26, 2024
UN nuclear chief: Iran isn’t willing to reconsider decision to bar inspectors
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency , speaks during the IAEA's general conference in Vienna, on September 16, 2024. (Joe Klamar/AFP)
UNITED NATIONS – Iran is not willing to reconsider a decision to deny access to top UN inspectors to its nuclear sites, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog tells AFP.
“They are not going to restore the inspectors to the list,” Rafael Grossi tells AFP, adding that the decision “is a blow and we don’t think it is constructive.”
IDF to hand over footage of Nahal Oz base to parents of surveillance soldiers murdered there on Oct. 7
The torched command center of the Nahal Oz IDF base, overrun by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, during a visit by relatives of slain lookout soldiers on December 19, 2023. (Courtesy/Eyal Eshel)
The IDF announces that it will hand over communication recordings and footage from the Nahal Oz base near the border with the Gaza Strip to the parents of surveillance soldiers who were murdered there by Hamas terrorists on October 7.
The military says it will hand over the documentation from the army base “from the day preceding the massacre and/or the last shift of each of the female soldiers regardless of the time of the shift,” as the petition requested.
The announcement, which was approved by IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, comes after the parents petitioned the High Court of Justice.
Attorney Gilad Yitzhak Bar-Tal, who represented the families, laments that “no recording will bring the female surveillance soldiers back to their parents” but praises the army for sparing the bereaved families a litigation process.
‘Deal now!’: Protesters block traffic in Tel Aviv, demanding government secure release of Gaza hostages
Protesters block traffic on Tel Aviv's Begin Road, calling for the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, September 24, 2024. (Pro-Democracy Movement/Adar Eyal)
Dozens of anti-government protesters gather for the daily rally at Tel Aviv’s Begin Road, calling for the government to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum has canceled its weekly protest in Tel Aviv this week, citing security concerns as fighting escalates between the Israeli military and the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.
The group’s main rally on Tel Aviv’s Begin Street, calling for a deal with the Hamas terror group to secure the release of the captives in Gaza, has been held alongside parallel protests across the country every Saturday evening for almost a year, since Hamas-led terrorists took 251 hostages during their October 7 attack on southern Israel.
The protesters block traffic while banging drums and carrying signs reading “Deal now!” and photos of hostages, marking 356 days of their captivity.
356 ימים והם עדיין בעזה ! כמו בכל יום, גם היום עשרות מפגינים מול שער בגין בדרישה להחזיר את החטופים עכשיו ! קרדיט אדר איל pic.twitter.com/Ux2mEvGxd9
— ❤️????לנצח בליבנו (@neverforgotton5) September 26, 2024
Earlier, Yarden Gonen, whose younger sister Romi Gonen, 24, who was shot and kidnapped while trying to escape the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im on October 7, called for the unconditional release of all of the 97 hostages still held by Hamas.
“Anyone from the international community who really supports a ceasefire must understand that they must seek to release all the hostages unconditionally,” she says during a virtual meeting hosted by the Hostages Forum. “We cannot do this alone. We need the help of the international community. We need the help of the world. If everyone places pressure on the Hamas terror organization – Everything will look different!”
Red Cross visits crew of hijacked Israel-linked ship for 2nd time since being detained in Yemen
The crew of the Israeli Galaxy ship, which was seized by the Houthi group, sit under a poster of the Houthi leader Abdul-Malik Badruldeen al-Houthi, on their ship in the port of Saleef, near Hodeidah, Yemen, May 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
CAIRO (AP) — A team of the International Red Cross has visited a 25-member crew on board of the Galaxy Leader vessel, which was hijacked last year by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels and is docked in the port city of Hodeidah— a Houthi stronghold.
The International Committee of the Red Cross says the visit yesterday was coordinated with local authorities, who reportedly provided access to the crew on the ship, says Jurg Montani, ICRC’s head of Yemen Delegation. A first visit by ICRC took place in May.
“It is part of the ICRC’s mandate and activities to visit all persons detained in relation to a conflict, to monitor conditions of detention and the treatment of detainees,” Montani says, adding that the organization is trying to facilitate links between the detainees and their families or diplomatic representations of their respective home countries.
Houthi rebels hijacked the cargo ship in the Red Sea in November 2023 and held its 25 crew members hostage in response to Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, sparked by the terror group’s October 7 massacre.
The crew members being held are from Bulgaria, the Philippines, Romania, Ukraine and Mexico, according to the ship’s Japanese operator NYK Line.
Nasser El-Dien Aamer, general director of Saba News Agency who accompanied the ICRC during their visit, tells Houthi-controlled al-Masirah TV that the fate of the crew members depends on negotiations with Hamas given that it’s an Israeli ship.
“If negotiations are successful, the authorities in Sanaa will immediately release them once an agreement is reached with Hamas,” he says, adding that the crew members are in “very good condition,” communicating with their families and receiving health care.
The Philippines government said in a statement last month that several of the 17 Filipino crew members were experiencing “significant health issues,” showing symptoms of malaria.
Amid reports US-led Lebanon truce bid was green lit by PM, Israeli official says proposal was seen but not approved
After a Channel 12 report claiming that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to an agreement with the US for a ceasefire process in Lebanon, an Israeli official says, “As we said, Israel was updated about the American proposal but never agreed to it.”
Members of Netanyahu’s entourage stressed on his flight to New York that he had never agreed to a ceasefire and that the topic did not come up in last night’s cabinet meeting.
CBS interview with former Hamas hostage Yarden Roman-Gat wins Emmy award
Yarden Roman-Gat in an interview with Leslie Stahl on '60 Minutes,' December 17, 2023. (Screen capture: '60 Minutes,' CBS. Used in accordance with clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
A CBS “60 minutes” interview with an Israeli woman who was held hostage by Hamas in Gaza for five weeks wins the award for Outstanding Edited Interview at the 45th Annual News & Documentary Emmys.
Israel-American producer Shachar Bar-On accepts the award, first of all thanking Yarden Roman-Gat for her participation in the interview with veteran US journalist Leslie Stahl.
Roman-Gat, 34, was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from her in-laws’ home in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7 and released in a truce deal on November 30.
In the CBS interview, released in mid-December, Roman-Gat said that she was under constant watch and faced perpetual fear of abuse throughout her 54 days in captivity. She spoke about the horror of hostage life, including having no control over what happened to her and being forced to act happy upon her release.
“First and foremost, thank you to Yarden Roman-Gat for trusting us and to her husband Alon, who also trusted us. His mother was killed on October 7 and his sister Carmel was just executed by Hamas this month,” Bar-On says, thanking them for trusting the team with their “important story.”
Bar-On also calls for an end to the ongoing war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas’s October 7 massacre, and the release of 101 Israeli hostages still held by terror groups in the Strip.
The #NewsEmmys Award for Outstanding Edited Interview goes to The Hostage Story | 60 Minutes (@CBS). pic.twitter.com/anWsZpXFbN
— News & Documentary Emmys (@newsemmys) September 26, 2024
IDF announces fresh wave of strikes against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon
The IDF announces that it is carrying out a fresh wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.
Netanyahu’s backtracking on ceasefire plan ‘shatters’ relations with Biden, report claims, setting out how effort collapsed
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the press from the tarmac after landing in New York, September 26, 2024. (Lazar Berman/Times of Israel)
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer had reached agreements in principle with the US on a ceasefire process covering both Lebanon and Gaza, with Netanyahu’s approval, before the prime minister backtracked today, Channel 12 reports, setting out what it says was the sequence of events that led to the apparent collapse of the effort.
The process began earlier this week with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan reaching out to Dermer, and saying that steps must be taken to prevent the Israel-Hezbollah escalation spilling out of hand. Dermer responded by saying that Netanyahu wanted to avoid all-out war.
Discussions then got underway on a temporary ceasefire during which a more permanent arrangement could be negotiated. This intended arrangement would be based on ongoing efforts by US envoy Amos Hochstein and on UN Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Lebanon war, and also on the Gaza hostage-ceasefire proposal unveiled by US President Biden at the end of May, the TV report says.
This broad framework was intended to enable Israel to say it had separated the northern front crisis from Gaza, while Hezbollah could argue that it was ceasing its attacks because the Gaza war would be coming to an end.
According to what Channel 12 calls “an emerging understanding,” Netanyahu was to have related to the intended arrangement during his speech to the UN General Assembly tomorrow. He was expected to declare that Hamas has been defeated militarily in Gaza and announce the transition to the next phase of that war.
The US-Israel discussions continued in unspecified “wider forums” ahead of Netanyahu’s departure for New York early this morning, including with the participation of Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, the head of the IDF’s Strategy Directorate and a former military secretary to Netanyahu.
It was recognized that even if the intended arrangement did not come to fruition, the effort to reach it would provide greater legitimacy for the US to stand firmly behind Israel if regional war were to break out, Channel 12 says.
While this diplomatic process, overseen by Netanyahu and Dermer continued, the IDF continued with its strikes on Hezbollah. Netanyahu updated a small number of ministers about the developments.
When word of the potential ceasefire began to emerge from the Biden Administration in Washington yesterday, this was done with Netanyahu’s knowledge and approval, the report adds.
Late last night, while Netanyahu was en route to New York, US President Joe Biden and French President Emanuel Macron jointly announced the 21-day ceasefire plan. The understanding was that Netanyahu would relate publicly to the intended arrangement when he landed in New York earlier today and it would be possible to take the effort forward, Channel 12 says. Netanyahu was set to say that while Israel continues to battle Hezbollah, it welcomes any ceasefire initiative that would safely enable the return of northern Israeli residents to their homes. There were even draft texts of what Netanyahu would say, the report says.
But then came the wave of political criticism of the nascent ceasefire in Israel, and “everything turned upside down,” Channel 12 says, and Netanyahu distanced himself from truce proposals, issuing denials from his plane.
Channel 12 quotes a source familiar with the details saying, “Obviously the president of the United States would not lead a process like this without the agreement of Prime Minister Netanyahu. This backtracking completely shatters what remains of relations with the Biden Administration.”
The TV report adds that clearly Hezbollah now has the means not to accept the arrangement either and not to accept a ceasefire, and that further escalation looms, which could lead to regional war, and only after that to the kind of arrangement that was on the table.
Channel 12 adds that reporters traveling with Netanyahu were told that no such arrangement was discussed by the security cabinet, and this is true. But, it says, the issue was discussed in the ad hoc forum Netanyahu assembled in recent days, attended by several key ministers although not by Defense Minister Yoav Galant. He told them about the discussions, and the US-French ceasefire efforts. Several ministers made plain their opposition to a ceasefire, and Netanyahu told them this was also an effort to bolster Israel’s legitimacy.
Channel 12 also says Netanyahu, having hardened his position in the wake of the political criticism at home, told reporters on his plane, when asked whether Israel would seek to kill Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, “If Hezbollah does not get the message we have conveyed in the past week, including the elimination of senior figures, he’ll understand in a different way.”
Veteran Likud MK tells Netanyahu: Any ceasefire with Hezbollah must guarantee return of Gaza hostages
People gather around an installation dedicated to hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, at a spot overlooking the northern city of Haifa on September 25, 2024. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP)
Any ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah must guarantee the return of the hostages held in Gaza as well as the return of displaced residents to the north, Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Yuli Edelstein tells Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In a letter, the veteran Likud lawmaker notes that since the beginning of the war, “Hezbollah tied its fate to that of Hamas” and while “this is not the time for a ceasefire” when a deal is eventually reached to end the fighting “we must include the return of all the hostages” along with “the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes while achieving all of the war’s objectives.”
Edelstein writes that based on information he has seen “about the significant achievements in the northern sector,” he believes that “it would be a mistake not to continue to deepen our achievement.”
“I am sure that it will be unnecessary to point out to you how a ceasefire at this time will allow the enemy to reorganize and restore his operational capabilities,” he adds.
Senior US official: China covered up sinking of newest nuclear-powered submarine
Illustrative: People walk past an illustration of a Chinese nuclear submarine at the Military Museum in Beijing on March 3, 2024. (Greg Baker/AFP)
WASHINGTON – China sought to cover up the sinking of its newest nuclear-powered submarine, according to a senior US defense official.
The sinking at a shipyard earlier this year was first reported by The Wall Street Journal, which also says that satellite imagery later showed large floating cranes arriving to salvage it.
“It’s not surprising that the PLA Navy would try to conceal the fact that their new first-in-class nuclear-powered attack submarine sank pierside,” the senior US defense official says on condition of anonymity, referring to Beijing’s People’s Liberation Army Navy.
“In addition to the obvious questions about training standards and equipment quality, the incident raises deeper questions about the PLA’s internal accountability and oversight of China’s defense industry — which has long been plagued by corruption,” the official adds.
The incident is a setback for China, which is seeking to modernize its navy — the largest in the world, but which includes many smaller warships such as frigates and corvettes.
The US and Britain are meanwhile working to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines — a move that would expand the pool of countries with the advanced undersea vessels.
Beijing has been critical of the effort, which also envisages jointly developing advanced warfighting capabilities and is seen as a strategic answer to Chinese military ambitions in the Pacific region.
Houthis vow support for Hezbollah, slam Israel’s ‘pre-planned aggression’ on Lebanon
Supporters of Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels gather for a rally in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa on September 15, 2024, to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, known in Arabic as 'al-Mawlid al-Nabawi.' (Abdallah Adel/AFP)
The leader of Yemen’s Houthis says the Iran-backed rebels “will not hesitate to support Lebanon and Hezbollah” as cross-border fire between the Lebanon-based terror group and Israel intensifies.
In a televised address, Abdul Malik al-Huthi condemns Israeli strikes on Lebanon, saying they aim to block Hezbollah, also backed by Iran, from “supporting Gaza and the Palestinian people.”
Since November, the Houthis have targeted Red Sea shipping with drones and missiles, saying it was in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war which was sparked by Hamas’s October 7 massacre on Israel.
Israel this month said it was shifting its military’s focus from Gaza to Hamas ally Hezbollah, which has fired on Israeli communities and military posts since the Gaza war began.
The Houthi chief describes Israel’s action in Lebanon as “pre-planned aggression” that has been “in place for years” while asserting Hezbollah was “stronger than ever before.”
Drawing on the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, he warns any “ground operation in Lebanon will inflict heavy losses on the enemy and its inevitable result will be a great defeat.”
The Huthi leader added that Hezbollah’s missiles could hit all parts of “occupied Palestine.”
The Houthis are fighting Israel as part of Iran’s “Axis of Resistance,” which includes Hamas, Hezbollah, and several Iraqi Shiite Muslim groups.
Algeria slaps visa requirements on Moroccans, citing alleged criminal activity including ‘Zionist espionage’
ALGIERS – Algeria says it is imposing visa requirements on Moroccans, accusing its passport holders of criminal activity, including “Zionist espionage,” in a new downturn in fraught relations with its neighbor.
A statement carried by Algeria’s official APS news agency charges that Morocco has “engaged in various actions that threaten Algeria’s stability” and accuses Rabat of having “deployed Zionist espionage agents holding Moroccan passports to freely enter the national territory.”
It also says Morocco has been conducting “multiple networks of organized crime, drug and human trafficking, not to mention smuggling and illegal immigration” within its borders.
Earlier this month, authorities in the Algerian city of Tlemcen said they had arrested seven people, including four Moroccans, accused of belonging to a spy ring.
Algiers broke diplomatic ties with Rabat in August 2021, citing “hostile acts” by its neighbor, months after the kingdom normalized relations with Israel.
In 2020, then-US president Donald Trump recognized Morocco’s annexation of the disputed Western Sahara in return for Rabat normalizing relations with Israel.
The border between Algeria and Morocco has been closed for 30 years.
IDF: Rocket sirens near Gaza border were false alarms
The IDF says rocket alert sirens that sounded a short while ago near the Gaza border were false alarms.
White House insists Lebanon truce was ‘coordinated’ with Israel, despite later being rejected by Jerusalem
All but confirming reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu burned the Biden administration after privately embracing its effort for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon only to come out against the initiative after it was announced, White House press secretary Jean Karine-Pierre tells reporters that the joint statement led by the US announcing the effort last night “was coordinated with the Israeli side.”
After a senior Western diplomat told The Times of Israel that Netanyahu privately gave his support for the 21-day ceasefire initiative, the premier’s office is now claiming that he only saw the proposal and did not approve it. The Western diplomat says Netanyahu and his aides were closely involved in crafting and approving the text of the joint statement, which is aimed at providing time for both a hostage release and ceasefire deal in Gaza and an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah that sees the terror group withdraw its forces away from the border.
“Our joint statement was a clear call … for a temporary ceasefire to open up space… for diplomacy to achieve a deal that allows civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes safely and securely,” Jean-Pierre says.
Turkey’s Erdogan decries Western support for Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon
Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan says Israel’s attacks on Lebanon targetting Hezbollah will continue as long as the West remains silent, according to broadcaster CNN Turk and other media.
Turkey has denounced Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, sparked by Hamas’s October 7 massacre, and condemned the Israeli attacks on Hezbollah too.
Speaking to Turkish journalists in New York before leaving the UN General Assembly, Erdogan says Israel’s airstrikes on Lebanon are proof that it was trying to spread the war in Gaza to the wider region, adding the UN is powerless to stop it.
“As the world remains silent and Western countries give the Israeli leadership weapons support, these massacres will sadly continue. We stressed this in our meetings,” he is reported as saying.
Some 200 Israelis, Jewish Americans protest Netanyahu at UN headquarters upon his arrival to New York
Israelis and Jewish Americans protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outside the UN Headquarters in New York on September 26, 2024. (Jacob Magid/Times of Israel)
NEW YORK — Some 200 Israelis and Jewish Americans have gathered outside the headquarters of the United Nations to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon his arrival in New York to speak tomorrow at the UN General Assembly.
The protesters are calling for a hostage deal and an end to the war in Gaza.
Speakers at the rally include Hamas hostage Nimrod Cohen’s father Yehuda Cohen, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Lab/Shul community Rabbi Amichai Lau Lavie and B’nai Jeshurun Rabbi Felicia Sol.
The rally is organized by a group of dovish pro-Israel organizations.
Some 25 rockets fired at Lower Galilee a short while ago; all land in open areas; man hurt by shrapnel
Some 25 rockets were launched from Lebanon at the Lower Galilee a short while ago, setting off sirens in several towns and injuring one person.
According to the military, the rockets all struck open areas.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it is treating a 45-year-old man who was moderately wounded by shrapnel amid the attack.
An Israeli Air Force drone struck the launcher used in the attack a short while later, the IDF adds.
Today, Hezbollah has launched more than 175 rockets at northern Israel.
Hostage families protest outside Likud New Year toast; counter-protesters throw eggs at them
Relatives of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza protest outside a Likud party toast ahead of the Jewish New Year in a call for the government to secure a deal to free their loved ones, with some posting videos on social media of being barred from the event by MKs.
Other videos posted to X show supporters of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pulling up outside the demonstration to curse at the protesters, while others throw eggs at the hostage families.
תומכי נתניהו והליכוד תוקפים את משפחות החטופים המפגינות מול אירוע הרמת כוסית לשנה החדשה בנתניה.
בתיעוד – זריקת ביצה, אחת מני רבות שנזרקו לעבר המשפחות!צילם אדיר סטופ Adir Stup pic.twitter.com/M8O3xPwWuV
— ❤️????לנצח בליבנו (@neverforgotton5) September 26, 2024
Protesters can also be seen scuffling with police outside the Likud headquarters in Givat Shmuel.
גבעת שמואל, הפגנת משפחות החטופים מול הרמת כוסית של המנותקים המפקירים מהליכוד pic.twitter.com/VpSQABOLpp
— ????️????????Bar????????????️ בחירות עכשיו (@barakdor) September 26, 2024
It is believed that 97 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 33 confirmed dead by the IDF.
IAF chief says preventing all weapon transfers from Iran to Hezbollah is now a top priority
IAF chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar speaks to officers at the Tel Nof Airbase, September 26, 2024. (Screenshot: Israel Defense Forces)
The chief of the Israeli Air Force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, says preventing all weapon transfers from Iran to Hezbollah is now a top priority.
“We in Lebanon are now going to prevent any possibility of weapon transfers from Iran, in the face of what we have taken away so far from Hezbollah,” Bar says during a meeting with officers at the Tel Nof Airbase today.
“This is a mission that is becoming the first in the order of priorities,” he says.
The IDF says Bar also participated in airstrikes in Lebanon today with the 133rd Squadron.
IDF says it uncovered Hezbollah plot to gather military intel with at least 17 fake social media profiles
An image released by the IDF showing some of some 17 fake social media profiles operated by the Hezbollah terror group in a plot to gather intelligence on the military, September 26, 2024. (IDF Spokesperson)
The IDF says it has uncovered at least 17 fake social media profiles operated by the Hezbollah terror group in a plot to gather intelligence on the military.
The profiles, uncovered by the IDF’s Information Security Department, tried to trick soldiers into revealing sensitive information about their location in bases and troop locations, the military says.
The IDF says some of the profiles presented themselves as soldiers, and the Hezbollah operatives, using the fake profiles, would build personal relationships with troops over social media apps with messages, audio recordings, and video calls.
צה״ל חושף: 17 פרופילים פיקטיביים של מחבלים מארגון הטרור חיזבאללה.
לכל הפרטים >> https://t.co/mjSEDRktd8 pic.twitter.com/AI1dB1tBf9— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 26, 2024
After meeting Gantz in Berlin, German chancellor says Israel-Hezbollah conflict risks ‘regional conflagration’
Former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz meets German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, September 26, 2024. (Ruth Zuntz)
BERLIN – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warns that the Israel-Hezbollah conflict could spark a “regional conflagration” after holding talks with visiting former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz.
Gantz was a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet until June, when he quit in protest of the lack of a post-war plan for Gaza.
During a visit to Berlin, Gantz also meets German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and other officials to discuss Israel’s two-front war against Hamas in Gaza and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Scholz posts on X that “Hezbollah must withdraw from the border area of Lebanon” and that “all parties have a responsibility to find a diplomatic solution.”
The German leader, who spoke with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati yesterday, said: “The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah must not become a regional conflagration.”
Scholz’s spokesman says the chancellor added that “Iran also has a responsibility to de-escalate the situation,” and that urgent steps were needed toward a Gaza ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages.
Germany has joined a group of nations that called “for an immediate 21-day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border.”
Abbas calls for UN resolution compelling Israel to allow him to visit Gaza, invites world leaders to join him
PA President Mahmoud Abbas approaches the podium during the United Nations General Assembly on September 26, 2024 in New York City. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images/AFP)
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas calls for the passing of a UN resolution compelling Israel to allow him to visit Gaza.
Abbas announced his intention to visit the war-torn Strip in a speech to the Turkish parliament last month. He has since claimed that Israeli authorities have barred him from entering the coastal enclave.
He welcomes world leaders to join him on the visit “so that we could all see the tragedies that are taking place.”
The PA president wraps up his UN General Assembly speech by saluting those fighting for the Palestinian cause at home and abroad. He hails those in the flashpoint refugee camps as well as the 6,000 in Israeli jails. “Israel arrests whoever it wants. Those prisoners’ dignity is being violated every day.”
“Palestine will be free. It will be free, despite those who object to that. Our people will… continue their legitimate struggle for independence from the occupation. The occupation will end,” he declares.
Sirens sounding again in northern communities near Lebanon border
Sirens are blaring again in northern communities near the border with Lebanon, warning of incoming rocket fire after Hezbollah fired around 150 rockets at Israel throughout the day.
The alerts are sounding in towns including Kfar Manda, Yodfat and Rumat al-Heib.
Rocket Alert [19:08:37] (3):
• Center Galilee — Kfar Manda, Yodfat, Rumat al-Heib
Population: 23,000 pic.twitter.com/BnA61pecYB— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) September 26, 2024
At UN, Abbas lays out 12-point vision for post-war Gaza, beginning with permanent ceasefire
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 26, 2024 in New York City. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images/AFP)
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas lays out his 12-point vision for the post-war management of Gaza, welcoming its review and amendment by the international community.
The first clause of the plan requires a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The second clause requires humanitarian aid to be delivered en masse throughout Gaza.
Third, Israel must fully withdraw its forces from Gaza, without establishing any buffer zones and allow displaced Palestinians to return to their homes, or at least to the since-razed towns where they lived before the war. Abbas flatly rejects what he claims is Israel’s plan to evacuate Palestinians into Egypt and Jordan.
Fourth, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, must be protected and allowed to continue operating, amid Israeli efforts to close it down due to accusations that some of its members took part in the October 7 attacks and that Hamas has infiltrated the organization more broadly.
Fifth, Abbas calls for “international protection for the Palestinians on their occupied land… We are not fighting Israel. We cannot fight Israel, and we don’t want to fight, but we want protection,” Abbas says.
Sixth, the Palestinian government must have jurisdiction over the entirety of the Gaza Strip, including the Rafah Border Crossing and other gates.
Seventh, the PA will continue its efforts to engage in a “comprehensive national reform process.” Abbas says Ramallah’s work on this issue has been hailed by countries around the world and that it will be essential to rebuilding infrastructure in Gaza destroyed during the war.
Eighth, the Palestinian government will be the sole representative body for Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem and will have authority over all of those territories. “We will not ask for more, but we will not accept any less,” Abbas says, adding that he is still prepared to hold national elections if Israel allows balloting to take place in East Jerusalem.
Ninth, the Palestinians will continue in their bid to obtain full-member status at the UN, and Abbas calls on the international community to back the initiative.
Tenth, the UN General Assembly resolution ordering an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem within a year must be fully implemented in order to actualize a two-state solution.
Eleventh, an international peace conference must be held within a year to implement the two-state vision.
Twelfth, the establishment of international peacekeeping forces to protect the people of both new countries.
“These are the elements of our vision for the day after… And I call upon you to adopt this plan and to provide all the necessary means to guarantee its success,” Abbas says.
IDF: Some 45 rockets fired at Upper Galilee in latest barrage, some downed, no injuries reported
Some 45 rockets were launched from Lebanon at the Upper Galilee an hour ago, according to the IDF.
Some of the rockets were intercepted and others struck open areas.
There were no reports of injuries.
Israel has secured $8.7 billion US aid package to support ongoing military campaigns — Defense Ministry
Defense Ministry director general Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir in discussions with Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Amanda Dory, and other Israeli and US officials, in a photo released on September 26, 2024. (US Department of Defense)
Israel has secured an $8.7 billion aid package from the United States to support its ongoing military efforts and to maintain a qualitative military edge in the region, the Defense Ministry announces in a statement.
The package includes $3.5 billion for essential wartime procurement, which has already been received and earmarked for critical military purchases, and $5.2 billion designated for air defense systems including the Iron Dome anti-missile system, David’s Sling, and an advanced laser system.
Israel is currently fighting on two fronts, against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The aid announcement comes after negotiations at the Pentagon between Eyal Zamir, the Defense Ministry’s director general, and US defense officials, including acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Amanda Dory, Israel’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.
“This substantial investment will significantly strengthen critical systems such as Iron Dome and David’s Sling while supporting the continued development of an advanced high-powered laser defense system currently in its later stages of development,” the statement says.
The ministry says the deal underscores the “strong and enduring strategic partnership between Israel and the United States and the ironclad commitment to Israel’s security,” particularly in addressing regional security threats from Iran and Iranian-backed terror groups.
UN expert report: Iran, Hezbollah helped Houthis with tactical, technical training outside Yemen
Armed Yemenis lift placards and flags during a rally in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa in solidarity with Palestinians amid the war in Gaza, August 16, 2024. (Abdallah Adel/AFP)
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have grown “from a localized armed group with limited capabilities to a powerful military organization” with the help of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hezbollah and Iraqi specialists, according to a confidential report by UN sanctions monitors.
The independent panel of experts, who report annually to the UN Security Council, says Houthi fighters have been receiving tactical and technical training outside Yemen, traveling on fake passports to Iran, Lebanon and Iraq.
Over the past year, the Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile strikes on ships in the crucial Red Sea shipping channels to show support for Palestinians in the Gaza war with Israel, disrupting global maritime trade by forcing shipping firms to divert cargo.
Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen publish a video showing how the group hijacked an Israeli-linked shipping vessel in the Red Sea on November 20, 2023. (Screen capture/X)
“The multiple testimonies gathered by the panel from military experts, Yemeni officials and even individuals close to the Houthis, indicate that they do not have the capacity to develop and produce, without foreign support, complex weapon systems,” the UN experts write in their latest report, seen by Reuters.
“The scale, nature and the extent of transfers of diverse military materiel and technology provided to the Houthis from external sources, including financial support and training of its combatants, is unprecedented,” they says.
The Iran-backed Houthis did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the UN report.
The sanctions monitors say weapons systems operated by the Houthis are similar to those produced and operated by Iran and terror groups of the Tehran-backed “Axis of Resistance” opposed to Israel and US influence in the Middle East.
“This transformation has been possible due to the transfer of materiel and the assistance and training provided by IRGC-QF, Hezbollah, and Iraqi specialists and technicians to the Houthis,” the UN experts report to the 15-member Security Council Yemen sanctions committee. “IRGC-QF” refers to the Quds Force, the overseas branch of the Revolutionary Guards.
Built up over years or decades of Iranian support, the “Axis of Resistance” includes the Houthis, Palestinian terror group Hamas, Lebanon-based Hezbollah, and various armed groups in Iraq and Syria.
Norway issues international search request for person linked to exploding Hezbollah pagers
Lebanese first responders carry a man who was wounded after his handheld pager exploded in an attack blamed on Israel targeting Hezbollah, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, September 17, 2024. (AP Photo)
Norwegian police have issued an international search request for Rinson Jose, a Norwegian-Indian man linked to the sale of pagers to the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah that exploded last week.
Jose, 39, disappeared while on a work trip to the US last week. He is a founder of a Bulgarian company that was reportedly part of the pager supply chain.
“Yesterday, September 25, the Oslo police district received a missing person report in connection with the pager case,” Oslo police say in an email to Reuters. “A missing persons case has been opened, and we have sent out an international warrant for the person.”
Jose declined to comment on the pagers when reached by phone last Wednesday, September 18, and hung up when asked about the Bulgarian business. He did not return repeated calls and text messages.
Jose’s Norwegian employer, DN Media Group, says he left for a conference in Boston on September 17, and the company has not been able to reach him since September 18. He works at the group’s sales department.
Over a two-day period last week, thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah operatives blew up in Lebanon, killing at least 39 people and wounding thousands. The attacks were widely believed to have been carried out by Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.
Bulgaria has investigated the company’s role in the supply of the booby-trapped pagers, but has found no evidence that they were made or exported from the country.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
In New York, PA president thanks American protesters ‘marching in the streets’ for Palestinian cause
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas thanks those around the world, particularly in the US, who have been demonstrating on behalf of the Palestinian cause.
“I acknowledge the American people who are marching in the streets in these demonstrations, and we are grateful to them,” he says, adding that the appreciation extends to those demonstrating in European capitals as well.
Demonstrators rally through the streets with signs and Palestinian flags during a ‘Flood Manhattan for Lebanon’ protest in New York on September 24, 2024. (Paul Frangipane/AFP)
He highlights those who have come to the West Bank to show solidarity, “risking their lives as Israelis attack them.”
Abbas recognizes American-Turkish activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi who was shot dead by the IDF earlier this month while protesting Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
The PA leader notes a shift in global opinion in favor of the Palestinian cause and thanks those offering their support, including countries that recognized a Palestinian state.
He again makes the case for full membership at the UN, saying the Palestinians have every right to receive such a status.
Abbas hails ‘specific timeframe’ in UN resolution on Israeli pullout from Palestinian territories
PA President Mahmoud Abbas pauses while speaking during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 26, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/AFP)
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas hails UN member states for backing a resolution this month demanding an Israeli withdrawal from the territories within a year and recognized the International Court of Justice advisory opinion that similarly called for such a withdrawal.
“For the very first time, there is a specific time frame,” Abbas boasts in his address to the UN General Assembly.
“We demand the implementation of this particular requirement, including an immediate cessation of annexation and settlement activities, dismantling of existing settlements, and evacuating settlers from Palestinian territory,” he adds.
“There are 600,000 settlers,” Abbas continues, referring to Israelis living in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. “They’re there living on our land. Why don’t they go back to their homes?”
Report: Some 80 rockets fired at Upper Galilee in latest barrage from Lebanon
Hebrew media reports that some 80 rockets were fired at Israel in the latest barrage from Lebanon a short while ago.
According to the reports, one of the rockets hit a building in the northern town of Birya, near Safed.
There are no immediate reports of injuries in the attack, which comes amid a sharp escalation in the almost a year of cross-border attacks from the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group.
PA president slams US for supporting Israel’s war against Hamas, argues Israel should be booted from UN
Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas speaks during the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on September 26, 2024.(Leonardo Munoz/AFP)
NEW YORK — Addressing the UN General Assembly, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas slams the Biden administration for supporting Israel in the war against Hamas in Gaza.
“We regret that the US administration — the largest democracy in the world — on three occasions obstructed draft resolutions at the Security Council demanding Israel to observe a ceasefire,” Abbas says.
“The United States alone stood and said, ‘No, the fighting is going to continue. It did this by using the veto while furnishing Israel with the deadly weapons that it used to kill thousands of innocent civilians — children and women,” the PA leader laments, claiming that it encouraged Israel to “continue its aggression.”
“This is the United States — the same country that was the only member in the Security Council that voted against granting the state of Palestine full membership in the UN,” he fumes. “I don’t understand how the United States could insist on opposing our people, insist on depriving us of our legitimate rights to freedom and independence, as is the right of the rest of the countries.”
The US has argued that such unilateral measures in international forums won’t advance Palestinian statehood, which can only be secured through negotiations with Israel. Ramallah points out that Israel’s leadership rejects a two-state solution altogether and has infuriated Jerusalem by backing efforts to drag it before international legal tribunals.
Abbas argues that if anything, it is Israel that shouldn’t be allowed membership in the United Nations, pointing to Israeli officials who have called for the institution to be shut down. Those officials made this call amid frustration over what has long been seen as the anti-Israel bias of the UN’s institutions and members.
The PA leader indicated that Ramallah will submit a request to have Israel booted from the UN over its violation of various resolutions.
Rocket sirens sounding in northern towns and cities including Safed, Rosh Pina
Sirens are sounding in several communities in the Upper Galilee, warning of incoming rocket fire.
The alerts are sounding in northern cities and towns near the border with Lebanon including Safed and Rosh Pina.
???? Rocket Alert [18:01:49] (19):
• Confrontation Line — Dalton
• צפת – נוף כנרת (×2), צפת – עיר (×2)
Population: 67,000 pic.twitter.com/faFjNM0BZP— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) September 26, 2024
Netanyahu at JFK airport: Israel will ‘keep striking Hezbollah full force until we accomplish all of our goals’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the press from the tarmac after landing in New York, September 26, 2024. (Lazar Berman/Times of Israel)
NEW YORK – Standing in the rain after stepping off his plane at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that Israel’s policy is clear: “We will keep striking Hezbollah with full force, and we won’t stop until we accomplish all of our goals — and first and foremost, returning the residents of the north safely to their homes.”
The assassination of the head of Hezbollah’s aerial force is part of that policy, he says.
Netanyahu and his wife Sara are met on the tarmac by Ambassador Michael Herzog, UN Ambassador Danny Danon, and New York Consul General Ofir Akunis.
Official: Gaza war to focus on taking away Hamas’s control of humanitarian aid deliveries
People gather outside a warehouse to receive humanitarian aid packages provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in central Gaza City on August 27, 2024. (Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP)
NEW YORK – An official in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s entourage traveling to New York says a focus of the war in Gaza is the attempt to harm Hamas’s civil rule of the Strip by taking away its control over the distribution of humanitarian aid.
Netanyahu instructed the IDF to present proposals, but because of the escalation in the north, it was delayed, the official says.
The presentation is likely to occur in the next 1-2 weeks, according to the source.
Palestinians ‘subjected to the terrorism of gangs of settlers’ in West Bank, Abbas tells United Nations
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas highlights Israeli settler violence and settlement expansion in his speech to the UN General Assembly.
“The West Bank is under a daily and continuous Israeli aggression,” Abbas says.
“It is seeing vicious settlement activity. They’re building everywhere in Palestine, as if all of Palestine is theirs,” he claims.
West Bank Palestinians are “subjected to the terrorism of gangs of settlers under the patronage and support of the Israeli government and the occupying army, which destroys hundreds of houses in the lands of Palestine,” Abbas laments.
Turning to Jerusalem, the PA president says, “Our eternal capital, Al Quds, is being subjected to entrenched campaigns to change its nature — to Judaize it.”
He accuses Israel of violating the status quo at the Temple Mount, apparently referring to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, as he claims that “a terrorist Israeli minister” has called for building a temple in the Al Aqsa Mosque.
“We must condemn and stop this reckless minister and those like him who want to set fire, a fire of religious conflict and strife that will burn everything in its way,” Abbas continues, claiming the Al Aqsa Mosque compound is the “exclusive property of Muslims,” negating Jewish claims to the site where the two ancient Temples once stood.
Palestinian Authority president begins UN speech by declaring three times, ‘We will not leave’
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas addresses the UN General Assembly in New York, September 26, 2024. (Screenshot, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
NEW YORK — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas begins his address to the UN General Assembly by three times declaring, “We will not leave.”
“Palestine is our homeland. It is the land of our fathers, our grandfathers. It will remain ours, and if anyone were to leave, it would be the occupying usurpers,” Abbas says.
He proceeds to accuse Israel of perpetrating a “full-scale war of genocide.”
He dismisses Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that Israel doesn’t kill civilians in Gaza. “I ask you, who is it then that killed more than 15,000 children?”
“Stop this crime. Stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue. The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people,” Abbas says.
Israeli official: Israel ‘won’t go to a ceasefire now’ with Hezbollah
NEW YORK — Israel “won’t go to a ceasefire now,” according to a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s entourage, amid an escalation with the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.
The subject did not come up in the cabinet meetings yesterday, the official says.
“We remain determined to return the residents [of the north] to their home safely,” says the official. “We are continuing the plan for the war that was approved by the prime minister.”
“If [Hezbollah chief Hassan] Nasrallah hasn’t understood the message until now, he’ll understand a different way,” says the official.
After assassination of Hezbollah’s aerial forces commander, IDF chief says strikes must go on
Following the assassination of Hezbollah’s aerial forces chief, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the military must continue to strike the terror group.
“We need to continue attacking Hezbollah. We have been waiting for this opportunity for years,” Halevi says following an assessment, in remarks provided by the IDF, hinting that the military is against a ceasefire at this stage.
“We are constantly working to make achievements, to eliminate more senior officials, to thwart the transfer of weapons, to [destroy] Hezbollah’s firepower [capabilities], and to attack it in all of Lebanon,” he adds.
WATCH: PA President Abbas addresses UN General Assembly in New York
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is addressing the UN General Assembly in New York.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu landed in the US a short while ago, ahead of his speech to the forum tomorrow morning.
US ambassador to Israel reiterates Biden’s call for 21-day ceasefire with Hezbollah
NEW YORK – US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew reiterates the Biden administration’s call for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah while stressing that the terror group was the party that instigated the ongoing conflict along the Blue Line.
“Since Hezballah began its rocket attacks on Israel on October 8, round after round of strikes and counter strikes have driven people from their homes,” Lew tweets.
“The unacceptable risk of broader regional escalation demands immediate action,” he continues, arguing that the ceasefire backed by over a dozen countries “is the best way for diplomacy to restore safety for citizens to return to their homes.”
“Conditions in the north of Israel and the south of Lebanon must change to permit their safe return. At the same time, we press forward every day for an agreement to release the hostages and achieve a ceasefire in Gaza,” Lew adds.
Netanyahu’s office says PM approved Beirut strike from Wings of Zion plane en route to New York
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approves a strike in Beirut from aboard the Wings of Zion en route to New York, September 26, 2024. (Avi Ohayon/GPO)
NEW YORK — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the strike in Beirut from Wings of Zion, says his office.
Officials on the flight say that the plane’s communications network worked perfectly.
IDF confirms: Commander of Hezbollah’s aerial forces killed in Beirut strike
A damaged building at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, September 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
The commander of Hezbollah’s aerial forces Muhammad Hussein Srur, was killed in the Israeli airstrike in Beirut, the IDF confirms.
According to the military, Srur directed and commanded numerous aerial attacks on Israel, including explosive-laden drones and cruise missiles.
In recent years, the IDF says he led Hezbollah’s drone manufacturing, and established sites in Lebanon where the terror group would build explosive UAVs, some of which were under civilian buildings in Beirut.
Srur joined Hezbollah in the 1980s and held various positions, including in the terror group’s air defenses, in the Aziz unit in the Radwan Force, and as Hezbollah’s attaché to Yemen where he was involved in the Houthis’ aerial forces, according to the military.
During the war he advanced numerous explosive drone attacks on Israel, as well as surveillance drones, the IDF says.
היום, 26 בספטמבר 2024, בהכוונה מודיעינית מדוייקת של חיל האוויר ואגף המודיעין, מטוסי קרב תקפו בביירות וחיסלו את מחמד חסין סרור, מפקד היחידה האווירית של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה>> pic.twitter.com/9btewwdOwE
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 26, 2024
Hamas chief Sinwar out of touch ‘for weeks’ on hostage-truce deal, but Israel doesn’t believe he’s dead — official
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) holds a press conference at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, July 13, 2024 (Dudu Bachar/POOL/Flash90); Hamas's leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar attends a rally marking Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day in Gaza City, April 14, 2023. (Mohammed Abed / AFP)
NEW YORK – There are ongoing attempts “all the time” to move hostage talks forward, says a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s entourage, adding that Mossad chief David Barnea is traveling regularly to move things forward.
The focus is on issues that are less controversial, in order to create some small measure of momentum, the official says. One example is the formula for exchanging hostages for Palestinian security prisoners.
But Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been out of touch “for weeks,” says the official. Israel asks Egypt and Qatar to get answers from Hamas, and they simply do not respond.
Still, Israel does not assess that Sinwar is dead.
But if he is killed, “we believe it will help us reach a deal,” the official adds.
Netanyahu lands in New York ahead of UN speech tomorrow
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lands in New York ahead of his speech at the United Nations tomorrow.
He is slated to meet the president of Paraguay, and the prime ministers of Serbia, Greece, and the Netherlands later today at the UN.
Footage on social media purports to show impact of Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh suburb of Beirut
Footage posted to social media purports to show the moment of a powerful blast from an Israeli airstrike in the Dahiyeh suburb of Beirut.
The strike in the known Hezbollah stronghold is believed to have targeted the head of Hezbollah’s aerial forces, known as Abu Salah.
According to Hebrew media reports, the strike on the Hezbollah leader used three precision missiles.
The IDF has yet to give details on the strike.
מרגעי התקיפה בביירות pic.twitter.com/0CPsHLAbLV
— בז news (@1717Bazz) September 26, 2024
IDF: Around 40 rockets fired at Upper Galilee from Lebanon; some intercepted, some land in open areas
Some 40 rockets were fired from Lebanon into the Upper Galilee a short while ago, the IDF says, after sirens were activated in several northern communities.
The military says some of the rockets were intercepted by air defenses, while others landed in open areas.
In a statement, the IDF adds that it is continuing to attack the Hezbollah terror group’s military infrastructure in Lebanon, including strikes on buildings, rocket launchers, and squads.
Among the targets of today’s IDF strikes was the rocket launcher that fired at the Acre area earlier today, according to the military.
מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר, בהכוונת פיקוד הצפון תוקפים בשעות האחרונות עשרות מטרות טרור של ארגון הטרור חיזבאללה בשטח לבנון>> pic.twitter.com/i8cf5pC5ny
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 26, 2024
PM told mediators he backed 21-day Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire before it was announced, diplomat tells ToI
This government handout photo shows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara boarding the Wing of Zion plane to travel to New York for the UN General Assembly, early September 26, 2024. (Avi Ohayon/GPO)
NEW YORK — Israel and Lebanon privately gave mediators their support for a 21-day ceasefire on the Blue Line that separates the two countries before it was announced in a joint statement led by the US and France last night, a senior Western diplomat tells The Times of Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly distanced himself from the proposal after it was announced, saying Israel has yet to respond and that the IDF would continue striking Hezbollah with full force.
The Western diplomat says Netanyahu’s conduct is an extension of how he has handled the Gaza hostage talks, in which he has privately agreed to show flexibility only to make public statements immediately afterward aimed at calming his political base but that risk thwarting progress in negotiations.
In civilian probe, IDF official claims military withholding truth of what happened during Oct. 7 massacre
The torched command center of the Nahal Oz IDF base, overrun by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, during a visit by relatives of slain lookout soldiers on December 19, 2023. (Courtesy/Eyal Eshel)
Testifying anonymously before an independent civilian commission of inquiry into October 7, an official from the IDF’s Southern Command accuses the military of withholding the truth of what happened during Hamas’s attack and claims that the army’s internal investigation into its response is marked by conflicts of interest.
Almost every investigation conducted by the IDF ground forces “is lightyears distant from the truth” and is “motivated by a strategy of protecting each other,” the official asserts.
One colonel placed in charge of a probe was slated to be promoted by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, “so how can he investigate the commanders’ performance,” the official asks, alleging “a clear conflict of interest.”
The official further states that when they asked why they had not been questioned in another probe, they were told that “we had to protect the general, and if we had asked you questions we would not have been able to protect the general and the command.”
“I can unhesitatingly say that the truth is not being told to the families of the surveillance soldiers,” he continues, referring to the IDF servicewomen tasked with monitoring the Gaza border in the weeks and months before the October 7 Hamas invasion.
Former IDF surveillance soldier Margaret Weinstein testifying before an independent civilian commission investigating the events leading up to the October 7 Hamas invasion and slaughter in southern Israel, September 17, 2024. (Screenshot)
Testifying before the commission last week, several former surveillance soldiers, as well as the parents of their fallen comrades, stated that they had had to contend with repeated technical glitches in their monitoring equipment and were never trained on how to respond should their bases be overrun.
The families of the surveillance troops have long demanded a probe into the IDF’s apparent disregard for their children’s warnings ahead of October 7.
Gallant approves ‘continued IDF offensive activity’ against Hezbollah in Lebanon
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant meets with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, head of the Operations Directorate Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk, and head of the Intelligence Directorate, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder on September 26, 2024. (Shachar Yurman/Defense Ministry)
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant approves “the continued IDF offensive activity” against Hezbollah in Lebanon, according to his office.
Gallant met with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, head of the Operations Directorate Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk, and head of the Intelligence Directorate, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder to approve the plans.
The four also observed the IDF’s airstrike in Beirut during the meeting, targeting a senior Hezbollah commander, his office adds.
According to defense sources, the strike targeted the head of Hezbollah’s aerial forces, who is responsible for the terror group’s drones, cruise missiles, and air defenses.
Rocket alert sirens sounding in Upper Galilee communities
Sirens are sounding in several communities in the Upper Galilee, warning of incoming rocket fire.
The alerts are sounding in the northern towns and cities including Kadarim, Merom HaGalil Regional Center, Meron, Safsufa, Or HaGanuz, Kfar Shamai, Shefer, Farod, Amirim and Bar Yochai.
???? Rocket Alert [16:06:57] (14):
• Upper Galilee — Kadarim, Marom HaGalil Regional Center, Meron (×2), Safsufa (Kfar Hoshen), Or HaGanuz, Kfar Shamai (×2), Shefer (×2), Farod, Amirim (×2), Bar Yochai
Population: 10,000 pic.twitter.com/ZhraSMHlMS— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) September 26, 2024
Bulgaria orders extradition to France of Paris Holocaust memorial vandalism suspect
A picture shows red hand graffiti painted on buildings' walls of the Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie street, in the area where earlier the Holocaust memorial was vandalized with the same red handprints in Paris, on May 14, 2024. (Antonin Utz/ AFP)
SOFIA — A Bulgarian court has approved the extradition to France of one of three Bulgarians wanted over the vandalism of Paris’s main Holocaust memorial in May.
Georgi Filipov, 35, is accused of daubing red hand marks on the memorial’s Wall of the Righteous, which lists 3,900 people honored for protecting Jews during the Nazi occupation of France in World War II.
The vandalism was staged during heightened tensions in France over the ongoing war in Gaza.
The court rules that Filipov be detained until his transfer. Both decisions are subject to appeal within a five-day deadline, the judge says.
French prosecutors launched a criminal probe for damage to a protected historical building with national, ethnic, racial or religious motives after the memorial was defaced. Other buildings in central Paris were also daubed.
In an interview with AFP in August, Filipov denied that he had acted out of racial or religious motives and insisted his act was “hooliganism” after drinking too much alcohol.
Yesterday, the Sofia Appeals Court postponed until October 2 a hearing on the extradition of another suspect sought by France in the case, 27-year-old Kiril Milushev.
A third Bulgarian, Nikolay Ivanov, who was detained in Croatia, agreed in August to be transferred to France.
IDF: Sirens in northern Golan Heights were false alarms
The IDF says that sirens that blared in the northern Golan Heights a short while ago were false alarms.
The alerts sounded in the northern communities of Odem and El Rom.
Rocket Alert [15:38:24] (2):
• Northern Golan — Odem, El Rom
Population: <500 pic.twitter.com/gquUhUoH86— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) September 26, 2024
Ben Gvir threatens to withdraw his party from coalition if Netanyahu agrees to Lebanon ceasefire
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir speaks during a ceremony at the National Police Academy in Beit Shemesh, September 23, 2024. (Oren Ben Hakoon/Flash90)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatens to withdraw his Otzma Yehudit party from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government if he agrees to a ceasefire in Lebanon.
Following a meeting with lawmakers from his far-right party, Ben Gvir warns the prime minister that acceding to a temporary deal would cause him to cease cooperating with the rest of the coalition and “if the temporary ceasefire becomes permanent we will resign from the government.”
“The most basic and understandable thing is that when your enemy is on his knees, you do not allow him to recover, but work to defeat him,” Ben Gvir states, arguing that pausing the fighting “conveys weakness, endangers the security of your citizens, and proves that you do not intend to win.”
Arguing that his party “will not abandon the residents of the north,” Ben Gvir states that “every day that this ceasefire is in effect and Israel does not fight in the north, Otzma Yehudit is not committed to the coalition.”
“If the temporary ceasefire becomes permanent…all the Otzma Yehudit ministers and MKs will resign from the government and the coalition.”
Target of Beirut strike said to be head of Hezbollah aerial forces
Footage taken by an onlooker in northern Israel appears to show a Hezbollah attack drone that crossed from Lebanon, on August 6, 2024. (Video screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
The target of the Israeli airstrike in Beirut is the head of Hezbollah’s aerial forces, defense sources tell Israeli media.
Hezbollah’s aerial forces are responsible for the terror group’s drones, among other units.
The IDF has said it will provide further details on the “targeted strike” in the Lebanese capital soon.
مشاهد جديدة للغارة التي استشهدفت الضاحية الجنوبية لبيروت pic.twitter.com/eP10A0iqCT
— هنا لبنان (@thisislebnews) September 26, 2024
المبنى المستـ هدف في الضاحية الجنوبية لبيروت https://t.co/5ywxJxpOQl pic.twitter.com/yfCIw1EiLA
— Ali Bk (@Bk_Hanas) September 26, 2024
Fire targets synagogue in southern West Bank; settler activists call it terrorist hate crime
A fire breaks out amid the ruins of the the ancient Eshtamoa Synagogue in the South Hebron Hills area of the southern West Bank, located in the Palestinian town of as-Samu.
Settler activists describe the attack as a hate crime and allege that the fire was started by terrorists who arrived at the site early in the morning and set fires amid the archaeological site.
A spokesperson for the Israel Police’s Judea District says the IDF reported a fire in the area earlier and that the police are checking the incident.
The IDF does not immediately comment on the causes of the fire.
Eliram Azoulai, head of the Mount Hebron Regional Council, describes the incident as “an act of terrorism for all intents and purposes,” adding that it was an attempt “to erase Jewish identity and symbols from the regions of our fathers.”
He adds that the security forces should deal with the issue “severely” and protect the synagogue.
פלסטינים הציתו את בית הכנסת העתיק בכפר סמוע בדרום הר חברון, וריססו כתובת "חמאס". כוחות הכיבוי שהגיעו למקום השתלטו על השריפה@carmeldangor pic.twitter.com/DFxqgdPFr7
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) September 26, 2024
IDF says it carried out targeted strike in Beirut
The IDF says it carried out an airstrike in the Lebanese capital of Beirut.
The military describes the strike as “targeted,” and says more details will be provided soon.
IDF targets Gaza school compound where Hamas operatives were planning attacks
The IDF says it carried out an airstrike against a group of Hamas operatives operating from a former school in the northern Gaza Strip a short while ago.
According to the military, Hamas was using the al-Faluja School compound in Jabaliya to plan and carry out attacks against IDF troops and against Israel.
The school has been serving as a shelter for displaced Gazans, and Palestinian media report several casualties in the strike.
The IDF says it took steps to mitigate civilian harm in the strike, and accuses Hamas of “systematically” using civilian sites for terror.
IDF Armored Corps holds drill simulating ground incursion in Lebanon
Troops of the 7th Armored Brigade carry out a drill in northern Israel, in a handout photo published September 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
Troops of the IDF’s 7th Armored Brigade have wrapped up a drill simulating a ground offensive in Lebanon, the military says.
According to the IDF, the drill took place several kilometers from the Lebanon border, and simulated ground operations and combat in “complex and mountainous terrain.”
The drill was the latest in a series carried out by the IDF for a potential ground offensive in Lebanon.
IDF says over 10 rockets fired at north in past hour; no injuries
More than 10 rockets were launched from Lebanon at northern Israel in the past hour, the IDF says.
According to the military, one rocket was fired at the Upper Galilee at 1:25 p.m., setting off sirens in Safed and Rosh Pina. The projectile was intercepted by air defenses, the IDF says.
Ten minutes later, 10 more rockets were fired from Lebanon at Kiryat Shmona, several of which were intercepted by air defenses and others that struck open areas, the IDF adds.
There are no reports of injuries in the attacks.
IDF says it killed several Oct. 7 attackers in Gaza in past week
IDF troops operate in the Gaza Strip, in a handout image published September 26, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
In the past week, several Hamas terrorists who participated in the October 7 onslaught were killed in Israeli airstrikes, the IDF says.
One drone strike killed Suleiman Abu Lafi, who according to the IDF was involved in smuggling arms into Gaza and directed attacks in the West Bank. His brother, Abdullah Abu Lafi, a member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group, was also killed in the strike, the military says.
A separate strike carried out by fighter jets killed a Nukhba Force commander who invaded Israel during the massacre on October 7, according to the IDF.
Meanwhile, the IDF says that some 15 terror operatives were killed by troops of the 162nd Division in Rafah in the past day.
Lebanon claims 20 people, almost all Syrians, killed in Israeli strike
Lebanon’s health ministry says 20 people, almost all Syrians, were killed in an overnight Israeli strike in east Lebanon, after the IDF said it hit Hezbollah targets in the area.
An “Israeli enemy strike on the village of Yunin” killed “20 people, including 19 Syrian nationals,” the health ministry says in a statement.
Over 22,000 people have crossed from Lebanon to Syria amid flare-up — Syrian sources
Syrian security sources say more than 22,000 people have crossed from Lebanon into Syria via two border crossings this week, as Israeli airstrikes pound Lebanon amid attacks on Israel by the Hezbollah terror group.
“More than 6,000 Lebanese and around 15,000 Syrians” have entered through the main Jdeidet Yabus border, known on the Lebanese side as the Masnaa crossing, one security source says, requesting anonymity, while a second security source reports that “around 1,000 Lebanese and some 500 Syrians have passed” through a second crossing.
Western diplomats said to accuse Katz, Netanyahu of sabotaging truce talks
Recent remarks by senior Israeli officials against a potential ceasefire appear to be efforts to sabotage talks for an Israel-Hezbollah pause in fighting to facilitate truce talks, according to two unnamed Western diplomats cited by Haaretz.
Statements like the one Foreign Minister Israel Katz issued, saying “there will not be a ceasefire in the north,” could tank the diplomatic efforts and lead to a full-out war, the sources are quoted as saying.
Giving Katz’s tweet as an example, one of the diplomats says: “This looks like deliberate harm to the negotiations.”
A diplomat from a country whose government has backed the talks is cited as expressing concern over what was reported as a briefing sent to reporters by the Prime Minister’s Office, asserting that Israel has set conditions for the talks that Hezbollah will not accept.
“These remarks aren’t helpful,” the official says.
Hostages’ families urge Israel to agree to a ceasefire with both Hezbollah and Hamas
Gil Dickmann, cousin of slain hostage Carmel Gat, speaks at a rally at Hostages Square, Tel Aviv, August 24, 2024. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Families of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza for nearly a year are urging Israel to ensure that any possible ceasefire deal with Hezbollah includes provisions for the war in Gaza.
Gil Dickmann, whose cousin, Carmel Gat, was kidnapped and was one of six Israelis executed by Hamas in their tunnels in August, says the families of the hostages are feeling forgotten as attention shifts to the northern front.
“We know that these things are connected to each other, the northern part and the southern part, they’re all part of the same large situation in which we are at from October 7th on. And we’re very worried that if we don’t make the right decisions now, we will miss this amazing opportunity to get the hostages out,” Dickmann says.
Report: Push for immediate Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire collapsed, leading to current temporary proposal
Before the current proposal for a temporary Israel-Hezbollah truce to facilitate negotiations for a full ceasefire, disagreements between the sides sunk earlier efforts for an immediate resolution to the conflict, according to the Arabic-language, London-based news site Asharq Al-Awsat.
Citing an unnamed Lebanese official familiar with the negotiations, the outlet says the earlier proposal was focused on establishing a new mechanism for enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701 from 2006, which stipulates that Hezbollah must move some 30 kilometers north of the border with Israel.
However, Hezbollah only agreed to discuss this if it was linked to a ceasefire in Gaza, which Israel rejected, causing those talks to break down.
IDF jets hit bridge at Lebanon-Syria border crossing, says Hezbollah using it to smuggle arms
Israeli fighter jets struck infrastructure on the Syria-Lebanon border which the IDF says was used by Hezbollah to smuggle weapons.
The military says the weapons smuggled into Lebanon from Syria are being used against Israel.
Lebanese transport minister Ali Hamieh tells Reuters the strike hit the Syrian end of a small bridge that provides a crossing into Lebanon.
Hamieh said he did not immediately know whether the crossing was still usable.
BREAKING – Israeli airstrikes target Matraba border crossing between Syria and Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/Eg6VKBedAw
— Fared Al Mahlool | فريد المحلول (@FARED_ALHOR) September 26, 2024
Lebanese officials say an Israeli strike killed 23 Syrian workers and family members in Lebanon
People check the rubble of destroyed buildings in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley village of Younine, on September 26, 2024 following an apparent Israeli airstrike (Photo by AFP)
An Israeli airstrike in Lebanon hit a building housing Syrian workers and their families, killing 23 people, Lebanese officials say. It was one of the deadliest single strikes reported in an intensified air campaign against the Hezbollah terror group.
The strike late last night came as the United States and its allies called for an “immediate” 21-day ceasefire to “provide space for diplomacy.” Israel has threatened to launch a ground invasion, and the increasingly heavy exchanges of fire could trigger an all-out war.
Lebanon’s National News Agency says the strike occurred near the city of Baalbek in Lebanon’s northeastern Bekaa Valley, which runs along the Syrian border. It quoted Ali Kassas, mayor of the village of Younine, as saying that the bodies of 23 Syrian citizens were pulled from under the rubble. He says four Syrians and four Lebanese were wounded.
The Lebanese Red Cross said it recovered nine bodies, while others were recovered by Hezbollah’s paramedic service and the Lebanese Civil Defense.
Israel has not commented directly on the strike but said that overnight jets struck some 75 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
The targets hit in the south of the country and the Beqaa Valley included weapon depots, primed rocket launchers, buildings used by the terror group, operatives, and other infrastructure, according to the military.
‘There will be no ceasefire in the north,’ contends Foreign Minister Katz
Foreign Minister Israel Katz waits for the arrival of his British counterpart, David Lammy, and his French counterpart, Stephane Sejourne, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, August 16, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Foreign Minister Israel Katz asserts that “there will be no ceasefire in the north,” after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied claims that a truce is in the cards.
“We will continue to fight the Hezbollah terror group with full force until victory and the return of residents of the north to their homes safely,” adds Katz, who is currently standing in for Netanyahu during the latter’s US trip but who doesn’t appear to have authority to make operational decisions on the prosecution of the war.
IDF conducts new wave of airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
The IDF announces that it is carrying out a new wave of airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
No further details are immediately given.
10 indicted over their part in fatal beating of teenager in 2022
Yoel Lhanghal (Courtesy)
Ten people, nine of them minors, are indicted on charges of causing injury under aggravated circumstances for their part in the brutal beating and subsequent death of Yoel Lhanghal, 18, in Kiryat Shmona in 2022.
One of those charged is also indicted on obstruction of justice charges.
Earlier this month, Liad Edri was sentenced to five and a half years in jail for the death of Lhanghal on charges of aggravated assault with intent, as well as obstruction of justice, after signing a plea bargain in which the murder charge was dropped.
According to the indictment filed against the 10 youths and young men, a verbal confrontation developed between Edri and Lhanghal. Those indicted were part of a group of some 14 youths who then attacked Lhanghal with sticks, rocks and other weapons, and repeatedly kicked him, even after he was stabbed in the stomach.
The charge of causing injury under aggravated circumstances is punishable by up to six years when perpetrated with any type of weapon, or in a group.
The Nazareth District Court ruled earlier this month that it had not been possible to determine who stabbed Lhanghal during the attack causing his death.
Surveillance footage of the killing showed dozens pouncing on Lhanghal at a party, hitting him and punching him until he collapsed.
Three police officers were indicted for obstructing justice in the aftermath of the attack. According to a report by the Kan public broadcaster, the daughter of one of the officers had been in a relationship with Edri.
Netanyahu says reports of imminent Lebanon ceasefire are false, denies toning down strikes
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks in a video statement on September 25, 2024. (Screenshot: GPO)
Hours after reports claimed officials expect a ceasefire in Lebanon within hours, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says these reports are incorrect.
“This is an American-French proposal that the prime minister hasn’t even responded to,” the Prime Minister’s Office says.
The statement also casts as “opposite from the truth” a Channel 12 report that Netanyahu has ordered the IDF to tone down strikes in Lebanon, saying the premier has empowered the army to keep striking with full force, and adding that fighting in Gaza will continue until all the war goals are reached.
IDF says 45 rockets launched at Acre, planes continuing to pound Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
Some 45 rockets were launched in the latest barrage from Lebanon, the military says, adding that some were intercepted and the rest fell in open areas.
Videos circulating online appear to show many projectiles landing in the sea.
תיעוד יוצא דופן: 25 רקטות שוגרו לעכו, נפילה אחר נפילה בים במהלך המטח @_Gitsis_
צילום: לפי חוק 27א' pic.twitter.com/yP4u1BW6On
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) September 26, 2024
The IDF adds in a statement that it is continuing to conduct strikes in Lebanon, targeting dozens of Hezbollah targets in several areas this morning, including terror operatives, military buildings and weapons depots.
In Kfarchouba, Air Force jets directed by the Northern Command struck several terror operatives, the army says.
Dozens of rockets reportedly launched at Acre area, no casualties; rest of north boosts readiness
Dozens of rockets were launched in the latest barrage targeting Acre and its surroundings, Hebrew media reports.
Some were reportedly intercepted, while medical officials have said there are no indications of direct impacts or casualties.
The IDF is yet to comment.
Meanwhile, a series of local authorities in the north have ordered residents to stay close to shelters until further notice, anticipating more potential Hezbollah attacks.
Report: Netanyahu told IDF to tone down Lebanon strikes amid ceasefire talks
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the IDF to tone down its attacks in Lebanon, Channel 12 news reports, citing no sources.
The alleged development comes amid an international push for a ceasefire in the fighting — a step vehemently opposed by Netanyahu’s voter base.
Rocket alarms blare in Acre, appearing to end 19-hour lull in attacks from Lebanon
Incoming rocket sirens are sounding in Acre and its surroundings, in what appears to be the first attack from Lebanon in over 19 hours amid a ceasefire push.
There are no immediate reports of impacts or casualties.
Lebanese report also claims Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire expected ‘soon’
Joining Britain’s Sky News, Lebanon’s MTV news site reports that there are officials who expect a temporary ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict to be reached soon.
Amid heavy opposition to such a move among Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s voter base, MTV cites unnamed sources familiar with the negotiations as claiming that diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire are “progressing,” and that they envision a deal “soon.”
Northern mayors, pro-Netanyahu pundits join chorus of condemnation of potential truce
Numerous local officials, northern mayors and pundits who are usually aligned with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been releasing a stream of strongly worded messages lambasting a potential ceasefire in Lebanon, indicating that Jerusalem accepting such a proposal at this time is highly unlikely.
“It would be a fatal mistake,” says Moshe Davidovich, head of the Matte Asher Regional Council and head of the Conflict Zone Forum, an umbrella group for northern councils that have for months urged the government to launch a major attack on Hezbollah to stop the constant bombardment of the north.
“This is a present we must not give Nasrallah. It would cause fatalities,” he tells Ynet, adding that such an agreement could come in several weeks if the country becomes safer.
Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern, a member of Netanyahu’s Likud party, says: “This shows the hypocrisy of the entire country. Now that the state is finally fulfilling its basic duty and defending us, they are talking now about a ceasefire.
“An agreement won’t bring back Kiryat Shmona,” he adds of his city, which has been evacuated and increasingly destroyed by Hezbollah missiles over the past year. “The talk of a ceasefire makes us feel like we were in a complicated situation for an entire year, for nothing.”
Staunchly pro-Netanyahu pundit Boaz Golan bluntly writes that signing a ceasefire now would cause him to withdraw his support for the government, and colleague Yotam Zimri calls a potential truce “reckless.”
IDF says terror operatives fired rockets at troops inside Gaza, some were intercepted
Several rockets were launched by terror operatives in Gaza at troops inside the Strip this morning, the military says.
Some of the projectiles were intercepted and the rest struck inside Gaza, causing no injuries, the IDF adds.
There were no injuries in the incident.
Residents of southern Israel reported seeing Iron Dome interceptor missiles launched over Kibbutz Sufa amid the incident.
Interceptor missiles were launched over Kibbutz Sufa amid an apparent rocket attack from the Gaza Strip a short while ago. No sirens sounded in any towns. pic.twitter.com/gLHOdzRrx3
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) September 26, 2024
Hamas and other terror groups have frequently launched mortars and short-range rockets at soldiers inside Gaza amid the fighting.
Rocket attacks from Gaza targeting Israeli towns have become increasingly rare, with the last projectiles fired on September 14.
Bank of Israel says there’s no justification to weigh abolishing NIS 200 banknote
Illustrative: A NIS 200 banknote. (Bank of Israel)
The Bank of Israel says there is no “professional justification” for a proposal to cancel NIS 200 banknotes as part of an effort to combat tax evasion.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the central bank and government ministries last week to examine the possibility of abolishing NIS 200 notes as a measure to combat “black money” and money laundering.
“Even though the matter has been raised, no sufficiently established professional justification to cancel any banknote has been presented,” the central bank says in a statement. “The Governor of the Bank of Israel does not intend to use his authority to work toward canceling any banknote or to change the mix of banknotes in circulation.”
“We emphasize that the NIS 200 banknote that is in circulation, similar to the other banknotes and coins, will continue to be used as usual,” the central bank says.
Earlier this month, a group of businesspeople and former senior government officials submitted a proposal to remove Israel’s largest bill from circulation in an effort to restrict the use of cash and help in the battle against tax evasion and money laundering, according to reports in the Hebrew press.
IDF says it hit 75 Hezbollah targets overnight in Lebanon
The IDF says fighter jets struck some 75 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon overnight.
The targets hit in the south of the country and the Beqaa Valley included weapon depots, primed rocket launchers, buildings used by the terror group, operatives, and other infrastructure, according to the military.
It publishes footage of the strikes.
מטוסי קרב של חיל האוויר, בהכוונת אגף המודיעין ופיקוד הצפון, תקפו במהלך הלילה כ-75 מטרות טרור של חיזבאללה במרחב הבקעא ובדרום לבנון, בהם מחסני אמצעי לחימה, משגרים מוכנים לשיגור לעורף ישראל, מבנים צבאיים, מחבלים ותשתיות צבאיות של הארגון>> pic.twitter.com/Hj1VaI1eLy
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 26, 2024
The IDF says it is continuing to strike in Lebanon to destroy Hezbollah’s capabilities.
Lapid says Israel should accept 7-day truce; opposition right-wingers disagree
Outgoing justice minister Gideon Sa'ar, right, and outgoing prime minister Yair Lapid at the swearing-in ceremony of the new Netanyahu government at the Knesset, December 29, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90)
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid says that Israel should partially accept a joint US-French call for an immediate truce between Israel and Hezbollah, but only for seven days and not 21, in order to keep the terror organization from regrouping.
“The State of Israel should announce this morning that it accepts the Biden-Macron ceasefire proposal, but only for seven days so as not to allow Hezbollah to restore its command and control systems,” he tweets. “We will not accept any proposal that does not include removing Hezbollah from our northern border.”
“Any proposal that is put forward must allow the residents of the north to immediately return safely to their homes and lead to the renewal of negotiations for a hostage deal” with Hamas, he continues, stating that “any violation of a ceasefire, even the slightest, will lead to Israel attacking again in full force and over all parts of Lebanon.”
Lapid’s statement comes a day after he received a security briefing from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Responding to Lapid, New Hope party chairman Gideon Sa’ar says that the opposite is true and that “only Hezbollah will benefit” from a temporary ceasefire.
New Hope MK Ze’ev Elkin, a member of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, agrees, tweeting that such a halt would “only allow Hezbollah to recover from the blows it received and reorganize for fighting.”
“The Israeli demand in Lebanon should be sharp and clear: there is no temporary ceasefire, only a permanent ceasefire without any connection to the continuation of the fighting in Gaza, and moving Hezbollah beyond the Litani River.”
Right wing up in arms over option of ceasefire, says Israel has no moral right to stop now
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (left) and National Missions Minister Orit Strock at a Religious Zionism faction meeting in the West Bank settlement of Givat Harel, February 14, 2023. (Sraya Diamant/Flash90)
Coalition officials are rushing to publicly urge Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to agree to a 21-day truce in Lebanon, saying this would lack moral justification and merely serve to allow Hezbollah to regroup following the series of blows it has received.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich tweets that “the campaign in the north should end in one scenario — crushing Hezbollah, denying its ability to harm the residents of the north.”
“The enemy must not be given time to recover from the heavy blows it received and to reorganize for the continuation of the war after 21 days,” he says, arguing that only the terror group’s surrender should head off a war in the north.
Headlines in various Hebrew media have been promising an imminent ceasefire based on a single report by Britain’s Sky News, which quotes unnamed US administration officials saying they “expect” a three-week pause to be implemented “in the coming hours.” Previous reports have quoted Israeli officials as saying chances for a ceasefire are very slim.
Settlements and National Projects Minister Orit Strock of Smotrich’s far-right Religious Zionism party likewise pans efforts to halt the fighting, stating that “there is no moral mandate for a ceasefire, not for 21 days and not for 21 hours.” She urges leaders to “not repeat past mistakes” by ending the fighting prematurely.
Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu calls efforts to secure a ceasefire “dangerous hypocrisy,” stating that “whoever did not know how to restrain Hezbollah during a whole year of incessant shelling… should not preach to us when we fight back.”
“We will not give up our security for fake ‘peace,'” he adds, shortly before his far-right Otzma Yehudit party announces that it will hold “an urgent meeting” to discuss the issue in the coming hours.
Culture Minister Miki Zohar of Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party says that he hopes what he terms the “reports” are not true, adding that agreeing to a ceasefire would constitute “a serious error that endangers Israel’s major security achievements in recent days.”
Addressing the prime minister directly on Twitter, Likud MK Tally Gotliv calls on Netanyahu to “withstand the pressure.”
Organizers nix Saturday’s weekly Tel Aviv rally for hostages amid escalation in north
In the shadow of the escalating fighting in Lebanon and the targeting of central Israel by Hezbollah, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum cancels Saturday evening’s weekly demonstration calling on the government to do more to release the hostages in Gaza.
The main rally on Tel Aviv’s Begin Road, which has in recent weeks drawn hundreds of thousands, will not be held “due to the security situation and out of care for the masses who were expected to show up,” organizers announce.
The Forum asks the public not to abandon the struggle for the 101 hostages, adding that it will soon issue a call for Israelis to go out with signs and flags to balconies and intersections on Saturday evening, demanding the return of the captives.
Hebrew media raises ceasefire prospects as US officials said expecting truce in ‘coming hours’
Headlines in various Hebrew media are promising an imminent ceasefire based on a single report by Britain’s Sky News, which quotes unnamed US administration officials saying they “expect” a three-week pause to be implemented “in the coming hours.”
Citing a late-night briefing by the senior American officials, the Sky News report appears similar to an earlier AFP report — citing similar sources — that quoted them as merely saying the sides are expected to decide “within hours” whether to accept an international initiative for a ceasefire.
Sky News cites the officials as saying that intensive diplomatic efforts have resulted in “near-agreement” for a halt in Lebanon that doesn’t include Gaza.
One administration official is quoted as saying: “The ceasefire will be for 21 days along the Blue Line. During those 21 days, the parties will negotiate towards a potential resolution of the conflict that has been ongoing since Hezbollah launched the attack on October 8, and to reach a comprehensive agreement along the Blue Line that allows for residents to return to their home in both Lebanon and Israel.
“It buys some time and space to try to pursue an arrangement in Gaza along the lines of the hostage deal we’ve been discussing,” the source adds. “We believe, regardless of what has happened on the battlefield over the last several days, the moment we feel is now to achieve that diplomatic resolution; to get there.”
Hezbollah claims rocket fired at central Israel has 500kg warhead, 190km range
This image released by Hezbollah on September 25, 2024, shows a Qader-1 missile. (Hezbollah media office)
The ballistic missile launched yesterday by Hezbollah at central Israel carried a 500-kilogram warhead, according to the terror group.
In a short video boasting about the capabilities of the “Qader-1,” Hezbollah says it has a range of 190 kilometers.
The missile was intercepted by Israel’s medium-range David’s Sling air defense system, and no damage or injuries were caused.
Hezbollah claimed to have targeted the Mossad headquarters near Herzliya in the attack.
Report: Bennett meeting Israelis in North America, signaling return to politics earlier than planned
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett at a court hearing in a defamation lawsuit against Rabbi Yosef Mizrahi at the Magistrate's Court in Tel Aviv, September 11, 2023. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett has reportedly hosted several large gatherings with Israelis in North America in recent weeks, in which he further indicated he intends to return to politics several years earlier than originally intended due to the “extreme change in circumstances.”
According to the Kan public broadcaster, Bennett fundraised and held interviews, lectures and meetings, including one in Montreal on Sunday with 600 Israelis and former Israelis in which he said the government must be replaced to mend Israel’s complicated situation. He also hosted an event in Los Angeles.
Bennett asked to hear about the challenges and needs of those who have left the country, including regarding potentially moving back, the report says.
He said that when he stepped down from politics in 2022, he originally planned to return only after his youngest child reaches the age of 15 in 2027, since his kids were suffering bullying and ostracization at school. However, the worsening societal chasm and the prolonged war have changed his mind, he reportedly said.
Kan cites some participants as concluding that Bennett is already in full campaign mode.
US official: Israel, Lebanon expected to decide ‘within hours’ whether to back joint truce call
A call by the United States, European Union and several Arab states for a ceasefire in Lebanon is an “important breakthrough,” a senior US official says.
“This is an important breakthrough on the Lebanon side, given all that has gone on there,” the official tells reporters in a briefing on the joint statement, which is aimed at avoiding a wider conflict as the nearly year-long fighting between Israel and Hezbollah intensifies.
Lebanon and Israel are expected to decide “within hours” whether to accept, a second US official says, adding: “We have had this conversation with the parties and felt this was the right moment.”
US, France lead joint call for immediate 21-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah
Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati speaks during a meeting of the Security Council, September 25, 2024, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
The United States, France and some of their allies call for an immediate 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah while also expressing support for a ceasefire in Gaza, according to a joint statement of the countries released by the White House following an emergency UN Security Council meeting on Lebanon.
“The situation between Lebanon and Israel since October 8th, 2023, is intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation,” says the statement, citing the date Hezbollah began launching attacks on northern Israeli communities and military posts following its ally Hamas’s October 7 massacres in southern Israel.
“This is in nobody’s interest, neither of the people of Israel nor of the people of Lebanon,” continues the statement. “It is time to conclude a diplomatic settlement that enables civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes in safety.”
The statement goes on to say that diplomacy “cannot succeed amid an escalation of this conflict,” before urging “an immediate 21 day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border to provide space for diplomacy towards the conclusion of a diplomatic settlement.”
“We call on all parties, including the governments of Israel and Lebanon, to endorse the temporary ceasefire immediately… and to give a real chance to a diplomatic settlement.”
“We are then prepared to fully support all diplomatic efforts to conclude an agreement between Lebanon and Israel within this period, building on efforts over the last months, that ends this crisis altogether,” concludes the statement.
The statement’s other signatories are Australia, Canada, the European Union, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
The White House also releases a separate statement from Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron, who met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, urging “broad endorsement” of the joint statement and “for the immediate support of the governments of Israel and Lebanon.”
“It is time for a settlement on the Israel-Lebanon border that ensures safety and security to enable civilians to return to their homes. The exchange of fire since October 7th, and in particular over the past two weeks, threatens a much broader conflict, and harm to civilians,” the two presidents say. “We therefore have worked together in recent days on a joint call for a temporary ceasefire to give diplomacy a chance to succeed and avoid further escalations across the border.”
Neither of the statements mention Hezbollah or Hamas at any point.
Netanyahu and his wife Sara board plane for flight to UN, don’t make public remarks
This government handout photo shows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara boarding the Wing of Zion plane to travel to New York for the UN General Assembly, early September 26, 2024. (Avi Ohayon/GPO)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boards Wing of Zion with his wife Sara for his trip to the United Nations.
Netanyahu did not offer any comments before boarding, a break from his usual routine before flying abroad.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz is officially Netanyahu’s stand in during the trip and has the power to convene the security cabinet.
Netanyahu heads to airport for NY flight after security cabinet meeting ends
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now heading to Ben Gurion Airport for his flight to the UN General Assembly in New York, after ministers wrap up a security cabinet meeting that was convened amid the escalating fighting with Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
UN Security Council holds emergency meeting on Lebanon; France proposes 21-day truce
France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot reveals at the UN Security Council a joint proposal with the United States for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon.
“A diplomatic solution is indeed possible. In recent days, we’ve worked with our American partners on a temporary ceasefire platform of 21 days to allow for negotiations,” he tells the 15-member UN Security Council.
Barrot says the plan will be made public soon.
“We are counting on both parties to accept it without delay, in order to protect civilian populations and allow for diplomatic negotiations to begin,” he says.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says during the same emergency Security Council meeting requested by France that Lebanon cannot become another Gaza and calls for an end to hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
“Let us say in one clear voice, stop the killing and destruction. Turn down the rhetoric and threats. Step back from the brink. An all-out war must be avoided at all costs,” Guterres says.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Israel prefers diplomacy but ready to ‘use all means’ against Hezbollah if talks fail — UN envoy
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon speaks during a news conference, September 25, 2024, at United Nations headquarters. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Israel says it’s open to a diplomatic solution on Lebanon but vowed to use “all means” in its goal of degrading Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
“We are grateful for all those who are making a sincere effort with diplomacy to avoid escalation, to avoid a full war,” Israel’s UN envoy Danny Danon says, but adds that if talks failed: “We will use all means at our disposal, in accordance with international law, to achieve our aims.”
IDF troops open fire after spotting suspicious movement near Lebanon border kibbutz
The IDF says troops identified suspicious movement near Kibbutz Manara along the Lebanon border a short while ago, and opened fire.
Soldiers are scanning the area, the military adds.
Iran threatens to back Hezbollah ‘with all means’ if fighting with Israel escalates
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attends a meeting with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in Tehran, Iran, August 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the Middle East is facing a “full-scale catastrophe” and warns Tehran will back Lebanon by “all means” if fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah escalates.
“The region is on the brink of a full-scale catastrophe. If unchecked, the world will face catastrophic consequences,” he tells reporters at the United Nations, adding that Iran would “stand with the people of Lebanon with all means.”
Araghchi also claims Israel has crossed “all red lines” and says the UN Security Council must intervene to restore peace and stability.
US says Biden, Macron discussed push to secure Israel-Hezbollah truce at UN meeting
French President Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with US President Joe Biden during a meeting on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 25, 2024. (Ludovic Marin/AFP)
UNITED NATIONS — US President Joe Biden met French President Emmanuel Macron at the UN General Assembly in New York for talks on negotiating a truce between Israel and Hezbollah, the White House says.
The leaders met on the sidelines of the gathering in New York “to discuss efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah and prevent a wider war,” it says in a statement.
Lebanese health ministry reports 72 killed, 392 wounded in Israeli strikes on Wednesday
The Lebanese health ministry says 72 people were killed and another 392 were wounded in IDF airstrikes strikes across Lebanon today.
The IDF says it targeted Hezbollah sites, including homes where the terror group stored munitions. It warned civilians ahead of carrying out the strikes.
read more: