Israel-Iran live updates: Intense fighting between Hezbollah and Israeli troops near Lebanon border
Keir Starmer warns region on brink as UK confirms its troops responded to Iranian missile strikes on Israel
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Intense fighting has continued between the Israeli military and Hezbollah, with clashes reported close to the border.
Hezbollah said it had clashed with Israeli troops in the border town of Maroun el-Ras after pushing back fores near another border town, adding that these battles were only “the first round”.
The Israeli military, meanwhile, says it has destroyed over 150 elements of Hezbollah’s military infrastructure. Israel also renewed its bombardment of Beirut’s southern suburbs on Wednesday.
Nearly 1,900 people have been killed and more than 9,000 wounded in Lebanon in the past year, with the majority of casualties coming in the last week.
It comes as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows revenge on Iran after its military fired around 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday evening in response to the invasion of Lebanon.
Netanyahu warned Tehran would “pay a price” after millions of Israelis rushed to shelters before explosions caused by Israel’s iron dome air defence system intercepting Iranian missiles lit up the night skies above Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Iran has said it considered the matter concluded and will respond if Israel retaliates.
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Saudi Arabia is hoping for de-escalation and dialogue, economy minister Faisal al-Ibrahim said on Wednesday, when asked at a conference in Berlin about the situation in the Middle East following Iran’s missile attack against Israel.
Al-Ibrahim called the escalation unfortunate but said it was very hard to avoid discussing.
“We hope that wisdom will prevail, de-escalation will happen, dialogue will come into place and more collaboration will be seen globally, but also regionally for us to address these challenges,” he said.
Hezbollah says 'we are only in the first round' following clashes with Israeli troops
Hezbollah is “only in the first round” following clashes with Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, the militant group’s media chief Mohammad Afif has said.
He added that the group has enough fighters, weapons and ammunition to push back Israel.
Iranian supreme leader Khamenei speaks on day after Iran launched missile attack on Israel
Iran’s religious supreme leader has spoken out a day after he ordered the launch of nearly 200 missiles at Israel.
Greeting a crowd in Tehran, the Iranian capital, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that “all the regions problems are because of the interference of the US and its allies”.
Hezbollah says it is clashing with Israeli forces infiltrating Lebanese border town
Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants are clashing with Israeli forces infiltrating the border town of Maroun Al-Ras, the militant group said in a statement on Wednesday.
British father in Israel films wave of Iran missiles filling sky
British father in Israel films wave of Iran missiles filling sky
Footage taken from the ground in Israel shows explosions over Kibbutz Hatzerim after Iran launched missiles into the country on Tuesday, 1 October. Simon King, a 60-year-old British-Israeli father living in the Kibbutz near Be’eri, described seeing “orangey-white” explosions across the sky before finding shelter in his safe room with his children. Tehran fired around 200 ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday evening following an Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Explosions caused by Israel’s iron dome air defence system intercepting Iranian missiles lit up the night skies above Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
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Egypt condemns 'dangerous' Israeli escalation in southern Lebanon
Egypt’s cabinet has condemned what it called a “dangerous” Israeli escalation in southern Lebanon and rejected any attempts to impose a “new situation” on the ground that violates Lebanese sovereignty, according to a statement released on Wednesday.
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More than 200 Chinese citizens evacuated from Lebanon, state media says
More than 200 Chinese citizens have been safely evacuated from Lebanon by the government, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday.
Hamas military praises Iranian attack on Israel
Hamas has described Iran’s massive aerial attack on Israel as an “exceptional day” despite the missiles failing to hit their targets.
A spokesperson for Hamas’ Al-Qassam military wing said: “We congratulate the Iranian response that extended to the entire geography of [Israel] and dealt a strong blow to the criminal occupation that thought that its rampage in the region and its aggression against its people could pass without punishment.
“This is an exceptional day in the history of the conflict, in which the fires of the nation’s resistance crossed in the skies of Palestine, and Tel Aviv was exposed to the strikes of the mujahideen from Yemen, Lebanon, Palestine, and Iran.
“This is a call to all the free people of the nation to make a share in the liberation of Palestine.”
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