Former PM Fouad Siniora says Hezbollah has turned Lebanon into a ‘failed state’

Published

1 month ago

October 13, 2024

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The man who was prime minister of Lebanon during the last Israeli invasion of the country in 2006 has both Israel and Hezbollah in his sights.

Talking to me in the hills above Beirut, Fouad Siniora says the Israeli forces are killing too many civilians in Gaza and in Lebanon.

He says the targeting of peacekeeping soldiers in southern Lebanon is just one example of what he described as war crimes.

He said: “This is something very bad what Israel has done and I hope it will awaken the attention of the whole world.”

But his anger was aimed also at Hezbollah, who he says have hijacked the country and the government.

He tells me he sees a great chance to reduce the influence of Hezbollah, given the weakened state in which they find themselves.

He says Lebanon must “turn a problem into an opportunity”.

“You cannot rule the country when you have two states… the state of Hezbollah… and the proper state that has been diminishing in authority,” he said.

Mr Siniora also insisted that Iran had to stay out of Lebanese affairs.

He said: “Lebanon cannot afford that Iran continues to mess around not only directly but also through its tentacles”.

He told me he believes Lebanon is already a failed state and could collapse completely unless there is a ceasefire and a full implementation of the UN resolution reinforced back in 2006.

If not, he predicts a very dire future for Lebanon.

Israel said on Saturday that dozens of rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel as the country marked Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military ordered residents of 22 southern Lebanese villages to evacuate immediately, and a UN peacekeeper was shot in Lebanon, the United Nations force in the country said.

The unnamed man is the fifth peacekeeper to be injured in three days.

“Conflict is like a virus and if you don’t deal with it quickly, it spreads,” says Mr Siniora.

But looking out from his terrace over Beirut, the palls of smoke from explosions still rise into the blue sky and it is clear a ceasefire is nowhere in sight.

World

Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv – as commander ‘sacked for lying about war progress’

Published

4 mins ago

November 25, 2024

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv - as commander 'sacked for lying about war progress'

Russia launched a large drone attack on Kyiv overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning the attack shows his capital needs better air defences.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 50 of 73 Russian drones launched, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries as a result of the attacks.

Russia has used more than 800 guided aerial bombs and around 460 attack drones in the past week.

Warning that Ukraine needs to improve its air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “An air alert has been sounded almost daily across Ukraine this week”.

“Ukraine is not a testing ground for weapons. Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state.

“But Russia still continues its efforts to kill our people, spread fear and panic, and weaken us.”

Russia did not comment on the attack.

It comes as Russian media reported that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the country’s southern military district, had been removed from his role over allegedly providing misleading reports about his troops’ progress.

While Russian forces have advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the invasion, forces have been much slower around Siversk and the eastern region of Donetsk.

Russian war bloggers have long complained that units there are poorly supported and thrown into deadly battles for little tactical gain.

Russia’s ministry of defence has not commented on the reports.

World

Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports

Published

2 hours ago

November 24, 2024

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Russian forces capture 'former British soldier' fighting for Ukraine - reports

Russian forces have reportedly captured a British man while he was fighting for Ukraine.

In a widely circulated video posted on Sunday, the man says his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson, aged 22.

He says he is a former British Army soldier who signed up to fight for Ukraine’s International Legion after his job.

He is dressed in army fatigues and speaks with an English accent as he says to camera: “I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment.”

He tells the camera he was “just a private”, “a signalman” in “One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron”.

“When I left… got fired from my job, I applied on the International Legion webpage. I had just lost everything. I just lost my job,” he said.

“My dad was away in prison, I see it on the TV,” he added, shaking his head. “It was a stupid idea.”

In a second video, he is shown with his hands tied and at one point, with tape over his eyes.

He describes how he had travelled to Ukraine from Britain, saying: “I flew to Krakow, Poland, from London Luton. Bus from there to Medyka in Poland, on the Ukraine border.”

Russian state news agency Tass reported that a military source said a “UK mercenary” had been “taken prisoner in the Kursk area” of Russia.

The UK Foreign Office said it was “supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention”.

The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment at this stage.

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Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE – as Israeli PM says he was murdered in ‘antisemitic terror incident’

Published

17 hours ago

November 24, 2024

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Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE - as Israeli PM says he was murdered in 'antisemitic terror incident'

The body of an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi who went missing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been found, Israel has said.

Zvi Kogan, the Chabad representative in the UAE, went missing on Thursday.

A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s office on Sunday said the 28-year-old rabbi was murdered, calling it a “heinous antisemitic terror incident”.

“The state of Israel will act with all means to seek justice with the criminals responsible for his death,” it said.

On Saturday, Israeli intelligence agency Mossad said it was investigating the disappearance as suspicions arose that he had been kidnapped.

The Emirati government gave no immediate acknowledgment that Mr Kogan had been found dead. Its interior ministry has described the rabbi as being “missing and out of contact”.

“Specialised authorities immediately began search and investigation operations upon receiving the report,” the interior ministry said.

Mr Kogan lived in the UAE with his wife Rivky, who is a US citizen. He ran a Kosher grocery store in Dubai, which has been the target of online protests by pro-Palestinian supporters.

The Chabad Lubavitch movement, a prominent and highly observant branch of Orthodox Judaism, said Mr Kogan was last seen in Dubai.

Israeli authorities reissued their recommendation against all non-essential travel to the UAE and said visitors currently there should minimise movement and remain in secure areas.

The rabbi’s disappearance comes as Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel after the two countries traded fire in October.

While the Israeli statement on Mr Kogan did not mention Iran, Iranian intelligence services have previously carried out kidnappings in the UAE.

The UAE diplomatically recognised Israel in 2020. Since then, synagogues and businesses catering to kosher diners have been set up for the burgeoning Jewish community but the unrest in the Middle East has sparked deep anger in the country.