(Jerusalem) The Israeli army, at war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, on Saturday ordered the inhabitants of this region not to return to their homes, at a time when the Lebanese movement carried out a new missile attack against northern Israel.
As Israel celebrates Yom Kippur, Judaism’s holiest day, its troops fight Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to continue the fight against these Islamist groups “until victory” allies of Iran.
The war in Gaza, triggered by an unprecedented attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023 on Israeli soil, and that in Lebanon are accompanied by an escalation between Israel and Iran, with Israeli leaders threatening to retaliate against an attack on Iranian missiles on 1er october.
“For your own protection, do not return home until further notice. Don’t head south; anyone heading south risks putting their life in danger,” army spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote in an Arabic message on X.
After the intensification on September 23 of Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, a Hezbollah stronghold bordering northern Israel, tens of thousands of families fled this region, according to the Lebanese authorities and the UN.
PHOTO LOUISA GOULIAMAKI, REUTERS
A displaced girl cleans the sidewalk next to her family’s makeshift shelter in Beirut, Lebanon, October 12, 2024.
The army has further warned health workers in southern Lebanon to stay away from ambulances which it says are used by Hezbollah to “transport terrorists and weapons”.
Israel celebrates Yom Kippur
New Israeli bombings targeted southern Lebanon, while Hezbollah announced that it had fired missiles at a military base near Haifa, the day after drone strikes on this large city in northern Israel.
These hostilities take place while from Friday evening to Saturday evening, Israel celebrates Yom Kippur, the day of “great atonement” during which everything almost stops in the country: borders, airports and most businesses are closed and transport public do not ride.
After weakening Hamas in Gaza, Israel moved the war front to Lebanon in September, with the aim of moving Hezbollah away from the border areas and stopping its rocket fire to allow the return to the north of Israel of some 60,000 displaced inhabitants.
PHOTO HASSAN AMMAR, ASSOCIATED PRESS
These rescue workers continue to search for victims at the site of Thursday’s Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, October 12, 2024.
The front opened in October 2023 by Hezbollah against Israel, in support of Hamas, transformed into open war on September 23 with the start of intense Israeli bombings on Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon.
The Israeli army also launched a ground offensive on September 30 in southern Lebanon.
Escalation between Iran and Israel
Israel came under fire on Friday after firing on the UN Interim Force (UNIFIL) stationed in southern Lebanon. Four peacekeepers were injured in 48 hours.
US President Joe Biden asked Israel to no longer fire on UN forces in Lebanon, while his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron deemed it “unacceptable” that they were being targeted “deliberately by Israeli forces”.
The Israeli army said Friday it had fired in the direction of a “threat.”
Since October 2023, more than 2,100 people have been killed in Lebanon, including more than 1,200 since September 23, according to an AFP count based on official figures. The UN has recorded nearly 700,000 displaced people.
On Saturday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf visited the site of an Israeli strike in central Beirut that killed at least 22 people on Thursday.
The day before, Iran repeated that it was “ready to defend its sovereignty”, while Israel promised its sworn enemy a “deadly, precise and surprising attack” on its missile launches on 1er october.