Israel has launched pre-emptive airstrikes in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah, with the militant group saying it has responded by firing drones and hundreds of rockets.
Warning sirens sounded in northern Israel and explosions were heard as the military’s Iron Dome aerial defence system shot down missiles from southern Lebanon.
Flights to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport were also suspended.
In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) accused Hezbollah of “preparing to file missiles and rockets toward Israeli territory”.
“In a self-defence act to remove these threats, the IDF is striking terror targets in Lebanon,” Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said.
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Israel’s ‘act of self-defence’
Hezbollah has issued a statement saying it has completed the “first phase” of its attack, after launching 320 Katyusha rockets and hitting 11 Israeli military sites.
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There has been no independent confirmation about the claims, nor whether any damage has been caused.
Image: Israeli military Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi gathered with colleagues to direct Sunday’s attacks. Pic: IDF
The Iran-backed fighting group – designated a terrorist organisation by several countries including the UK – said its attacks were in retaliation for the killing of a top commander last month.
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Fuad Shukr died in a strike in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, previously described Shukr as “one of the most wanted terrorists in the world”.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese National News Agency described “enemy warplanes” causing “severe damage to property, crops, and infrastructure, especially the electricity and water networks”.
The escalation was predicted according to an assessment of Israeli intelligence by the country’s best-connected security correspondents.
Analysis: ‘Extremely dangerous moment for the region’
Israel had been expecting a response to the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr and its military has been on high alert for the last three and a half weeks.
To have carried out pre-emptive strikes on a wave of Hezbollah missile launchers, reportedly primed to fire at 5am, suggests extremely good intelligence that might have prevented considerable damage to Israel.
Hezbollah has said it targeted Israeli military bases and that the first wave of its response is over.
When the next wave comes is unclear, but this is an extremely dangerous moment for the region. Keeping Israel guessing as to when the next attacks will come, is all part of the psychological warfare.
The US, which has been kept closely informed of developments, has already positioned its military hardware around the region in anticipation of this moment.
With high-level delegations due to meet in Cairo later today to discuss a possible Gaza ceasefire, Washington will be urging Israel not to retaliate hard just now, in fear the situation will spiral out of control and in the hope progress can be made at those talks.
Few though, believe a ceasefire in Gaza is close.
But if Hezbollah is expected to launch further major assaults on Israel, there will be loud voices within the Israeli government and security establishment urging prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take offensive action now, rather than waiting to see what comes next.
Mr Netanyahu held a meeting early on Sunday with members of his cabinet about the attacks.
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin has also spoken with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant.
The Pentagon said he “reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s defence against any attacks by Iran and its regional partners and proxies”.
Sunday’s attack came as Egypt hosts a new round of talks aimed at ending Israel’s war against Hamas, now in its 11th month.
Hezbollah has said it will halt the fighting if there is a ceasefire.
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Thousands of Palestinians have flocked to aid distribution sites in Gaza with desperation for food overcoming concerns over Israeli-enforced checks at the centres.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is backed by Israel and the US, said on Tuesday it had distributed around 8,000 food boxes, equivalent to about 462,000 meals – just a fraction of what is needed, aid agencies say.
The centres have opened as hundreds of legal professionals in the UK, including lawyers and former judges, accused Israel of “genocide” and “war crimes”.
Image: Palestinians carry food boxes delivered by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in Rafah. Pic: AP
Crowds including women and children could be seen at one centre in Rafah, southern Gaza, where people received packages including rice, flour, canned beans, pasta, olive oil, biscuits and sugar.
Witnesses in Rafah said Israeli gunfire was heard after desperate people broke fences to reach supplies.
The Israeli military said its forces did not direct aerial gunfire towards the centre, but rather fired warning shots in an area outside the hub.
In a statement, it said control over the situation had been established, with aid distribution to continue as planned.
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Many Palestinians stayed away amid fears over Israel’s plan to use biometric screening procedures on those receiving vital food packages.
Israeli officials said one advantage of the new aid system is the chance to screen recipients to exclude anyone they say is connected with Hamas.
Image: Thousands gather for aid. Pic: Reuters
Image: A person kneels next to food supplies in Rafah. Pic: Reuters
Humanitarian groups briefed on the plans say anyone receiving aid will have to submit to facial recognition technology – which many Palestinians fear will end up in Israeli hands to track and possibly target them.
Father-of-seven Abu Ahmed said: “As much as I want to go because I am hungry and my children are hungry, I am afraid.”
He continued: “I am so scared because they said the company [GHF] belongs to Israel and is a mercenary, and also because the resistance [Hamas] said not to go.”
Image: A child carries a bottle of oil. Pic: Reuters
UN boycotts aid foundation
Israel previously said its forces would not be involved in the distribution points but its endorsement of the plan, which resembles Israeli schemes floated previously, has led to many questioning the neutrality of GHF.
The United Nations and major international aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF – accusing it of undermining the principle that aid should be distributed based on need.
“Humanitarian assistance must not be politicised or militarised,” said Christian Cardon, chief spokesperson of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
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Gaza babies are skin and bone
Ex-judges call for sanctions on Israel
Over 800 legal professionals – including former Supreme Court judges – have published an open letter calling for the UK to impose sanctions on Israel.
The letter says “genocide is being perpetrated in Gaza or that, at a minimum, there is a serious risk of genocide”. It continues: “War crimes, crimes against humanity and serious violations of international humanitarian law are being committed.”
As the GHF centres opened on Monday, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 36 people in a school-turned-shelter that was hit as people slept, according to local health officials.
Israel said it targeted militants operating from the school.
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People line up for food in Gaza
UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF.
They claim Israel is weaponising food, and the new distribution system will be ineffective and lead to further displacement of Palestinians.
They also argue the GHF will fail to meet local needs, and violates humanitarian principles that prohibit a warring party from controlling humanitarian assistance.
In the meantime, scores of Palestinians in Gaza, like Islam Abu Taima, have resorted to searching through rubbish to find food.
Image: Palestinians are having to search through rubbish to find food
She found a small pile of cooked rice, scraps of bread, and a box with a few pieces of cheese inside it – which she said she will serve to her five children.
“We’re dying of hunger,” she told the Associated Press news agency.
“If we don’t eat, we’ll die.”
Image: Islam Abu Taeima finds a piece of bread in a pile of rubbish in Gaza City. Pic: AP.
It is unclear how many of the GHF’s aid trucks will enter Gaza.
It claims it will reach one million Palestinians by the end of the week.
There are questions, however, over who is funding it and how it will work.
Image: Trucks transporting aid for Palestinians in Rafah. Pic: Reuters.
It has been set up as part of an Israeli plan – rather than a UN distribution effort.
Israel, which suggested a similar plan earlier this year, has said it will not be involved in distributing the aid but supported the plan and would provide security.
It says aid deliveries into Gaza are taken by Hamas instead of going to civilians.
Aid groups, however, say there is no evidence of this happening on a systemic basis.
Israel began to allow a limited amount of food into Gaza last week – after a blockade that prevented food, medicine, fuel and other goods from entering the Palestinian enclave.
A letter has been signed by hundreds of judges and lawyers calling on the UK government to impose trade sanctions on Israel.
It also calls for Israeli ministers to be sanctioned and the suspension of Israel from the UN over “serious breaches of international law”.
“Genocide is being perpetrated in Gaza or that, at a minimum, there is a serious risk of genocide,” the letter says.
The Israeli government has repeatedly dismissed allegations of genocide in Gaza.
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3:58
At least 31 dead after school attack
More than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its ground invasion of Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, following the deadly attacks by the militant group on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw around 250 people taken hostage.
The health ministry’s figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters in Gaza.
King Charles and Queen Camilla are being urged to use their visit to Canada to seek an apology for the abuse of British children.
Campaigners have called on them to pursue an apology for the “dire circumstances” suffered by so-called “Home Children” over decades.
More than 100,000 were shipped from orphan homes in the UK to Canada between 1869 and 1948 with many used as cheap labour, typically as farm workers and domestic servants. Many were subject to mistreatment and abuse.
Canada has resisted calls to follow the UK and Australia in apologising for its involvement in child migrant schemes.
Image: King Charles and Mark Carney on Monday. Pic: PA
Campaigners for the Home Children say the royal visit presents a “great opportunity” for a change of heart.
“I would ask that King Charles uses his trip to request an apology,” John Jefkins told Sky News.
John’s father Bert was one of 115,000 British Home Children transported to Canada, arriving in 1914 with his brother Reggie.
“It’s really important for the Home Children themselves and for their descendants,” John said.
“It’s something we deserve and it’s really important for the healing process, as well as building awareness of the experience of the Home Children.
“They were treated very, very badly by the Canadian government at the time. A lot of them were abused, they were treated horribly. They were second-class citizens, lepers in a way.”
John added: “I think the King’s visit provides a great opportunity to reinforce our campaign and to pursue an apology because we’re part of the Commonwealth and King Charles is a new Head of the Commonwealth meeting a new Canadian prime minister. It’s a chance, for both, to look at the situation with a fresh eye.
“There’s much about this visit that looks on our sovereignty and who we are as Canadians, rightly so.
“I think it’s also right that in contemplating the country we built, we focus on the people who built it, many in the most trying of circumstances.”
The issue was addressed by the then Prince of Wales during a tour of Canada in May 2022. He said at the time: “We must find new ways to come to terms with the darker and more difficult aspects of the past.”
On Tuesday, the King will deliver the Speech from the Throne to open the 45th session of Canada’s parliament.
Camilla was made Patron of Barnardo’s in 2016. The organisation sent tens of thousands of Home Children to Canada. She took on the role, having served as president since 2007.
Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.
A spokesperson for the Canadian government said: “The government of Canada is committed to keeping the memory of the British Home Children alive.
“Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada deeply regrets this unjust and discriminatory policy, which was in place from 1869 to 1948. Such an approach would have no place in modern Canada, and we must learn from past mistakes.”