This morning, after an evacuation order from the Israeli army, a series of new Israeli raids began against the southern outskirts of Beirut, considered the stronghold of the Lebanese Hezbollah. Columns of smoke rose from two affected areas following what national news agency ANI described as “two consecutive attacks”. The Arabic-language spokesperson of the Israeli army, Avichay Adraeehad announced on platform X its intention to strike pro-Iranian Hezbollah bases. Meanwhile, around 20 rockets were fired from Lebanon towards the Upper Galilee and Western Galilee, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported. The military said some rockets were intercepted, while others reached Israeli territory. The news was also confirmed by Times of Israel Columns of smoke rose from two affected areas while the official national news agency (ANI) reported “two consecutive attacks”. The Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, had warned on Platform X that pro-Iranian Hezbollah bases would be targeted. Around 20 rockets were fired from Lebanon towards the Upper Galilee and Western Galilee areas. This was announced by the IDF. According to the military, some of the rockets were intercepted and some were found to have impacted inside Israel, reports the Times of Israel.
A truce is possible in southern Lebanon
It all comes as Israeli sources indicate the deal with Lebanon has been finalized and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now considering how to present it to the public. As reported by Kan 11 News Israel gave the green light to American mediator Amos Hochstein to proceed towards the agreement. In this sense, Netanyahu convened a limited security consultation with selected ministers on Sunday evening. The discussions focused on the IDF’s freedom of action in the border area between Syria and Lebanon. According to sources familiar with US policy, Jerusalem received “assurances from Washington on freedom of action in case of violation of the agreement.” After the meeting on Sunday evening, an Israeli official said to Kan 11 News : « The definitive green light has not yet been given to the agreement with Hezbollah: there are still issues that need to be discussed and resolved but we are getting closer». The US Under Secretary of Defense for Middle East Affairs, Dan Shapiro, is expected to arrive in Israel today. The purpose of his visit: to define the security aspects linked to the possible, and perhaps truly imminent, ceasefire.
The men who killed Rabbi Zvi Kogan arrested
News comes from the United Arab Emirates with the authorities who have published photos of the suspects in the murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan. The Ministry of Interior of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced this morning the identities of the suspects in the rabbi’s murder identified in Olympians Tohirovich (28 years old), Makhmudjon Abdurrahim (28 years old) e Azizi Kamilovich (33 years old). The statement reads: «The Ministry underlines the readiness of the competent security authorities in quickly adopting the necessary measures to discover the details of the accident, its circumstances and its motives, and in making use of their human and professional capabilities, their expertise and technical skills which led to the arrest of the culprits, praising the vigilance of the security services and the speed of their procedures which ensured the identification of the culprits of the crime, their pursuit and arrest in a short time, and their efficiency in managing attempts aimed at destabilize the security and stability of the UAE society.” But who ordered the murder? As reported by Ynet, the terrorist cell responsible for the murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan, an emissary of Chabad-Lubavitch, may not have acted under the directives of Iran and is instead hypothesized to have acted on orders from Hamas or Islamic Jihad. If the three arrested are not extradited to Israel, there is a very real possibility that they will be sentenced to death given that the law in the UAE «establishes the death penalty for those guilty of attempting or threatening the President, the Vice-President or any of the members of the Government of the Emirates and their families, and for those who conspire against the State and the Government”.
