What to remember from Friday, September 20

The Israeli army estimated on Friday that it had killed “around ten Hezbollah commanders” in its airstrike on Beirut, which left at least fourteen dead and 66 wounded.

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Smoke rises over the suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, on September 20, 2024, after an Israeli strike. (AFP)

A deadly attack. Israel carried out an airstrike on Beirut (Lebanon) on Friday, September 20, which left at least fourteen dead and 66 injured, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health. The Israeli army assured that it had killed “A dozen Hezbollah commanders” in the attack, including Ibrahim Aqil, the head of the Islamist movement’s elite paramilitary unit. Hamas said it condemned “violent and terrorist aggression”described as“brutal escalation” in the region. Franceinfo takes stock of what to remember from this new day of the conflict in the Middle East.

Israel carries out airstrike on Beirut

An Israeli strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, left at least 14 dead and 66 wounded on Friday, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The Israeli army said it had killed “A dozen Hezbollah commanders”including the head of the Islamist movement’s elite paramilitary unit, Ibrahim Aqil – information confirmed by the Lebanese Shiite movement.

The man was wanted by the United States for his role in the bombings of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut in April 1983, which killed 63 people, and of U.S. Marines in October 1983, which killed 241 servicemen.

Rockets fired from Lebanon towards Israel

The army announced on Friday that about 140 rockets had been fired from Lebanon into Israel by midday. For its part, Hezbollah claimed to have fired salvos of rockets at an Israeli intelligence base that it accuses of being behind the attacks. “assassinations”adding that it was a “response to attacks by the Israeli enemy” on the south of Lebanon.

Hamas and Iran accuse Israel of provoking an “escalation”, the Jewish state denies

Iranian Foreign Minister Nasser Kanani condemned the Israeli airstrike on Friday. “brutal and vicious.” “There is no doubt that the Zionist regime seeks to escalate tensions and expand the geography of war and conflict in the region”he added. Hamas also condemned “violent and terrorist aggression”, qualified as“brutal escalation” in the region.

Allegations denied by the Israeli army, which said it had no intention of increasing tensions in the region. “We act in accordance with the defined objectives [de la guerre] and we will continue to do so”the IDF spokesman said.

Lebanon accuses Israel of terrorism after pager explosion

The simultaneous explosions of pagers and other communications devices in Lebanon this week are “simply terrorism”accused the Lebanese foreign minister on Friday, calling Israel a“Rogue State”. The head of Lebanese diplomacy, Abdallah Bou Habib, announced the filing of a complaint with the UN Security Council following “Israeli cyberterrorist aggression constitutes a war crime”.

International law “forbidden” the use of devices “trapped” having the appearance of objects “harmless”for his part launched the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, before the Security Council, gathered to discuss the series of deadly explosions of Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon.


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