World

Israel sends more troops into Lebanon after Iranian missile attack

Published

2 months ago

October 2, 2024

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Israel has sent more troops into Lebanon after a night of escalation brought the Middle East a step closer to war.

On Tuesday evening, in a move anticipated by officials, nearly 200 missiles were launched from Iran into Israel.

The attack, coming in retaliation for Israel’s campaign of strikes against Hezbollah including the killing of its leader, marks a significant escalation in the region.

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Most of the missiles were intercepted, Israel said, with US help, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to respond, labelling the attack a “major mistake”.

The two countries have since traded threats as allies and onlookers, including the UK, called for a step back amid fears of regional war breaking out.

Then on Wednesday, the Israeli military said that infantry and armoured units were joining ground operations in southern Lebanon.

It claimed actions there would remain limited and localised but concerns of a ground invasion remain.

However, Hezbollah’s media chief Mohammad Afif said the group was “only in the first round” of fighting following the most recent wave of clashes in southern Lebanon.

Meanwhile, across Gaza, Israeli attacks claimed at least 60 lives, medics said, according to Reuters, adding that Israeli tanks had advanced in the southern areas of Khan Younis.

In other developments:
• UN general secretary Antonio Guterres has been banned from Israel.
• An Israeli squad commander was killed in Lebanon.
• A Lebanese soldier was injured in an Israeli drone strike, according to the country’s army.
• Iran’s supreme leader has said the West is “the source of war and instability” in the region.
• Three people have been arrested after blasts, likely caused by hand grenades, near the Israeli embassy in Denmark.

More Israeli troops in southern Lebanon

Israel said on Tuesday that commando and paratrooper units had crossed their northern border into southern Lebanon.

It subsequently added that special forces units had been carrying out cross-border raids against Hezbollah targets for months.

But, the recent addition of infantry and armoured troops from the 36th Division, including the Golani Brigade, the 188th Armoured Brigade and the 6th Infantry Brigade, suggests that the operation has moved beyond limited commando raids.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed its ground operation is largely aimed at destroying Hezbollah tunnels and infrastructure on the border, with no plans for a wider operation.

Over the past two weeks, Israeli strikes have killed over 1,000 people in Lebanon, with almost a quarter of them women and children, according to the country’s health ministry, as over one million people have been displaced.

Most recently, the IDF warned people to evacuate from another 50 villages in southern Lebanon, in a UN-declared buffer zone.

‘At least 60 killed’ in Gaza overnight

Israeli military strikes overnight killed at least 60 Palestinians, medics said, adding that Israeli tanks briefly advanced in the south of the enclave.

Israeli tanks carried out a raid in areas in eastern and central Khan Younis, before partially retreating, killing at least 40 people and wounding dozens, according to the official Voice of Palestine radio and Hamas media.

The European Hospital in Khan Younis said it received bodies after Israeli strikes in the city with hospital records showing that seven women and 12 children as young as 22 months old were among those killed.

Dr Saleh al Hams, head of the nursing department at the hospital, said he had seen dozens of dead and wounded people in his facility from around 3am local time.

He warned the number of dead could rise.

Israel carried out a massive offensive earlier this year that left much of Gaza’s second city in ruins.

Houthis target Israeli military posts

Meanwhile, Houthis have targeted military posts deep inside Israel amid the escalating tensions.

Yahya Saree, a spokesperson for the group, said on Wednesday that it had used three winged ‘Quds 5’ rockets.

The group added that continuous support for Israel from the US and UK would put their own interests “under fire”.

“We will not hesitate in broadening our military operations against the Israeli enemy and who is behind it until the aggression against Gaza and Lebanon ends,” Mr Saree added.

Persona non grata

In a move likely to deepen the already wide rift between Israel and the UN, foreign minister Israel Katz declared the UN general secretary Antonio Guterres “persona non grata”, as he banned him from entering the country.

It is not immediately apparent if Mr Katz has the power to do this, but he accused Mr Guterres of having an anti-Israel bias after not referring to Iran in a statement made on Tuesday.

In a speech after the move, Mr Guterres said he “strongly condemns” the Iranian attack on Israel and warned that the “deadly cycle of tit-for-tat violence” in the Middle East “must stop”.

“Time is running out,” he told the organisation’s security council.

Later on Wednesday, the IDF said seven soldiers had been killed in combat, a day after the start of a ground incursion into southern Lebanon.

The IDF identified the soldiers as Captain Harel Ettinger, Captain Itai Ariel Giat, Major Noam Barzilai, Major Or Mansour, Major Nezer Itkin, Sergeant Alamkan Tarfa, and Sergeant Ido Breuer.

This came after Captain Eitan Itzhak Oster, 22, a squad commander in the “Egoz” unit, was the first death announced since Israel’s most recent attacks on Lebanon began.

World

Arrest warrants issued for Israeli PM Netanyahu and former defence secretary Gallant and senior Hamas commander over alleged war crimes

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

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Arrest warrants issued for Israeli PM Netanyahu and former defence secretary Gallant and senior Hamas commander over alleged war crimes

Arrest warrants have been issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defence secretary Yoav Gallant and a senior Hamas commander by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The warrants against the senior Israeli figures are for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the war in Gaza that Israel launched following the 7 October attacks by Hamas.

The prime minister’s office said the warrants against him and Gallant were “anti-semitic” and said Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions”.

Another warrant was issued for the arrest of Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al Masri for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Al Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif, was the mastermind behind the 7 October attacks. It is unclear if he is still alive, following an airstrike that Israel claimed killed him earlier this year.

Neither Israel nor the US are members of the ICC. Israel has rejected the court’s jurisdiction and denies committing war crimes in Gaza.

US President Joe Biden described the warrants against Israeli leaders as “outrageous”, adding “whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas”.

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett said the warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant were a “mark of shame” for the ICC.

The court originally said it was seeking arrest warrants for the three men in May for the alleged crimes and today announced that it had rejected challenges by Israel and issued warrants of arrest.

The new UK Labour government said in the summer it would not oppose the ICC’s right to issue the warrants.

Warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant

In its update, the ICC said it found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” for alleged crimes.

These, the court said, include “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”.

Netanyahu previously spoke of his “disgust” at the suggestion the ICC would seek an arrest warrant for him.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews said the ICC’s decision sent a “terrible message”.

“The court has minimised how Hamas fights – deliberately from within civilian infrastructure and cruelly using Palestinian civilians as human shields, tragically leading to many casualties,” the board said.

“Democratic governments, and people around the world, should consider how they would have responded to an October 7th perpetrated against their country, involving mass murder, rape, and hostage-taking.

“We should all be focused on defeating the Hamas terrorists, liberating the hostages, ensuring that civilians in Gaza receive all necessary aid and working towards a sustainable peace for Israelis and Palestinians to prevent these horrible conflicts in the future.

“The decision of the ICC is counter-productive in all these respects.”

This will never leave Netanyahu

Three arrest warrants have been issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) but the two most significant are those against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.

The court in their statement said that they have reasonable grounds to believe that those two men, have been carrying out the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.

Ever since the arrest warrants were first sought there have been a lot of legal challenges. But the court has rejected all that and has now issued these arrest warrants.

So what does it mean? Well, practically, it would mean that Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant couldn’t travel to any state that is a signatory of the ICC – about 120 countries around the world, including the UK and many European countries.

Were Netanyahu to travel to any of those countries, he should be arrested by the police forces of those countries. And it’ll be very interesting to see what Sir Keir Starmer’s reaction is to this.

But the US, Israel’s closest ally, is not a signatory of the ICC. I think Netanyahu will have support on the other side of the Atlantic.

Also, these ICC arrest warrants don’t always get carried out. We saw President Vladimir Putin, who had an arrest warrant issued for him after the invasion of Ukraine, travel to Mongolia a couple of months ago and nothing was done about that.

But in terms of the reputations of Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, in terms of that legacy, they are now wanted suspects, wanted to be put on trial for war crimes. And it is a label that will never leave them.

Warrant for Hamas leader

The ICC also said it has issued an arrest warrant for Hamas leader Al Masri, saying it has “reasonable grounds to believe” that he is responsible for crimes against humanity including murder, extermination, torture, rape, as well as war crimes including taking hostages.

Discussing the 7 October attacks, the court said: “In light of the coordinated killings of members of civilians at several separate locations, the Chamber also found that the conduct took place as part of a mass killing of members of the civilian population, and it therefore concluded that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the crime against humanity of extermination was committed.”

In its statement, the ICC said the prosecution was not in a position to determine whether Al Masri is dead or alive, so was issuing the arrest warrant.

The court previously said it was seeking an arrest warrant for Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas who was subsequently killed in July.

World

UK refuses to say if it would arrest Netanyahu after ICC warrant

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

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UK refuses to say if it would arrest Netanyahu after ICC warrant

The home secretary has refused to say if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be arrested if he landed on British soil after an international arrest warrant was issued for him.

On Thursday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli defence secretary Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the war in Gaza.

But Yvette Cooper said the ICC, which the UK is a member of, is independent and while the government respects that, it “wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment” on the processes involved.

She told Sky News: “We’ve always respected the importance of international law, but in the majority of the cases that they pursue, they don’t become part of the British legal process.

“What I can say is that obviously, the UK government’s position remains that we believe the focus should be on getting a ceasefire in Gaza.”

However, Emily Thornberry, Labour chair of the foreign affairs committee in parliament, told Sky News: “If Netanyahu comes to Britain, our obligation under the Rome Convention would be to arrest him under the warrant from the ICC.

“Not really a question of should, we are required to because we are members of the ICC.”

The government said after winning July’s election it would not oppose the ICC’s right to issue the warrants.

An ICC arrest warrant was also issued for Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al Masri, the mastermind behind the 7 October attacks in Israel, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Israel claims Al Masri was killed earlier this year but the ICC said that has not been confirmed, so it was issuing the arrest warrant.

Netanyahu’s office said the warrants against him and Gallant were “anti-semitic” and said Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions”.

Neither Israel nor the US are members of the ICC. Israel has rejected the court’s jurisdiction and denies committing war crimes in Gaza.

US President Joe Biden described the warrants against Israeli leaders as “outrageous”, adding: “Whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas.”

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett said the warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant were a “mark of shame” for the ICC.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews said the ICC’s decision sent a “terrible message”.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday he would invite Netanyahu to visit Hungary and he would guarantee the arrest warrant would “not be observed”.

However, both France and Italy signalled they would arrest Netanyahu if he came to their countries.

The ICC originally said it was seeking arrest warrants for the three men in May for the alleged crimes and on Thursday announced that it had rejected challenges by Israel and issued warrants of arrest.

In its update, the ICC said it found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” for alleged crimes.

These, the court said, include “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”.

It is the first time a sitting leader of a major Western ally has been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity by a global court of justice.

World

Another teenager dies after methanol poisonings in Laos – bringing total killed to six

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

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Another teenager dies after methanol poisonings in Laos - bringing total killed to six

A second Australian teenager has died after being poisoned with methanol in Laos, bringing the number of people killed to six.

Holly Bowles, 19, has died, according to the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Penny Wong, who said: “All Australians will be heartbroken by the tragic passing of Holly Bowles. I offer my deepest sympathies to her family and friends.”

Bianca Jones, who according to Australian authorities was Ms Bowles’s best friend, died earlier this week after both 19-year-olds fell ill on 13 November while staying in southeast Asian country.

They are two of six people who are believed to have died after drinking methanol-laced vodka in the tourist hotspot.

The death of British woman Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, was announced on Thursday. She fell ill after reportedly drinking “free shots” from a local bar in Vang Vieng – a resort popular with backpackers.

Two Danish women in their 20s and a 56-year-old US citizen also died as a result of the mass poisoning.

Methanol, which is sometimes added to mixed drinks as a cheaper alternative to alcohol, but can cause severe poisoning or death.

The manager and owner of the hostel where the two Australians, both from Melbourne, were staying, has been detained, according to an officer at Vang Vieng’s Tourism Police office who refused to give his name.

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