| |
Israeli Airstrikes Cut off Syria Road 10/04 06:07
Israel carried out a series of massive airstrikes overnight in southern
suburbs of Beirut and another that cut off the main border crossing between
Lebanon and Syria, a main crossing point for tens of thousands of people
fleeing Israeli bombardment.
BEIRUT (AP) -- Israel carried out a series of massive airstrikes overnight
in southern suburbs of Beirut and another that cut off the main border crossing
between Lebanon and Syria, a main crossing point for tens of thousands of
people fleeing Israeli bombardment.
The blasts in the Beirut suburbs sent huge plumes of smoke and flames into
the night sky and shook buildings kilometers (miles) away in the Lebanese
capital. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on what the intended
target was, and there was no information immediately available on casualties.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported there were more than 10
consecutive airstrikes in the area.
The Israeli military said Friday that a strike in Beirut the day before
killed Mohammed Rashid Skafi, the head of Hezbollah's communications division.
The military said in a statement that Skafi was "a senior Hezbollah terrorist
who was responsible for the communications unit since 2000" and was "closely
affiliated" with high-up Hezbollah officials.
Friday's strike about 60 kilometers (37 miles) to the east along the
Lebanon-Syria border led to the closure of the road near the busy Masnaa Border
Crossing.
Associated Press video footage showed two huge craters on each side of the
road. People disembarked cars unable to pass the site of the strike, carrying
bags of their possessions as they crossed on foot.
Tens of thousands of people fleeing war in Lebanon have crossed into Syria
over the past two weeks there.
The airstrike came a day after an Israeli military spokesperson said
Hezbollah has been trying to transport military equipment through the border
crossing.
Hezbollah is believed to have received much of its weaponry from Iran via
Syria. The group has a presence on both sides of the border, a region where it
has been fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces.
The new wave of strikes came after Israel warned people to evacuate
communities in southern Lebanon that are outside a United Nations-declared
buffer zone, as the yearlong conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant
group Hezbollah escalates.
Israel launched a ground incursion into Lebanon on Tuesday and its forces
have been clashing with Hezbollah militants in a narrow strip along the border.
A series of attacks before the incursion killed some of the group's key
members, including longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Iran's Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, arrived Friday in Beirut, where he
was expected to discuss the war between Israel and Hezbollah with Lebanese
officials.
Araghchi's visit to Beirut came three days after Iran launched at least 180
missiles into Israel, the latest in a series of rapidly escalating attacks that
threaten to push the Middle East closer to a regionwide war.
Iran is Hezbollah's main backer and has sent weapons and billions of dollars
to the group over the years.
In the Iranian capital, Tehran, the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei led Friday prayers and delivered a speech where he praised the
country's recent missile strike on Israel and said Iran was prepared to conduct
more strikes if needed.
He spoke to thousands of people at the capital's main prayer site, the
Mosalla mosque, which was decorated with a huge Palestinian flag.
Friday's strike at the border crossing was the first time this major border
crossing has been cut since the beginning of the war. Lebanese General Security
recorded 256,614 Syrian citizens and 82,264 Lebanese citizens crossing into
Syrian territory between Sept. 23 -- when the Israel launched a heavy
bombardment of southern and eastern Lebanon -- and Sept. 30.
There are half a dozen border crossings between the two countries and most
of them remain open. Lebanon's minister of public works said all border
crossings between Lebanon and Syria work under the supervision of the state.
Israel and Hezbollah have traded fire across Lebanon's southern border
almost daily since the day after Hamas' cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in
which the militants killed 1,200 Israelis and took 250 others hostage.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it carried out a strike Thursday in
Tulkarem, a militant stronghold in the occupied West Bank, in coordination with
the Shin Bet internal security service.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said 18 people were killed in an Israeli
strike on a refugee camp there.
Violence has flared across the Israeli-occupied territory since the
Israel-Hamas war erupted in October 2023. Tulkarem and other northern cities
have seen some of the worst violence.
Israel declared war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip in response to their Oct. 7
attack. More than 41,000 Palestinians have since been killed in the territory,
and just over half the dead have been women and children, according to local
health officials. Nearly 2,000 people have been killed in Lebanon in that time,
most of them since Sept. 23, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
|
|
