Incursion into South Lebanon, strikes on the southern suburbs, unprecedented raid on Aïn el-Héloué: what to remember from the night

Tensions rose in Lebanon on Monday evening after US officials announced an Israeli incursion into South Lebanon. « imminent ». An operation which began early Tuesday, around 2 a.m., through “limited, localized and targeted ground raids (…) in villages near the border” and with the stated aim of “bringing the citizens of northern Israel home”declared the Israeli army in a press release. This is the first time since 2006 that the Israeli army has carried out an operation in Lebanese territory.

Before the incursion

– On Monday evening, the Israeli army declared three border areas of Lebanon “closed military zones”namely the regions of Metula, Misgav Am and Kfar Giladi, indicating that it was “strictly prohibited to enter these areas”.

– Shortly after, the spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, Stéphane Dujarric, announced that “ the more than 10,000 peacekeepers of the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) can no longer patrol due to the intensity of the fighting”.

– Finally, the Lebanese army for its part indicated “reposition your troops” in South Lebanon after Israeli threats of incursion, “5 km” from the borderaccording to a security source cited by Reuters.

L’incursion

– The Israeli Air Force first carried out a series of airstrikes targeting several distributed localities throughout the region of South Lebanon.

– After issuing an order to evacuate three different neighborhoods, the Israeli army carried out at least eight strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut. The toll of these bombings, some of which were heard in Beirut and the region, was not immediately known.

– Around 2 a.m. Tuesday, the Israeli ground incursion began in South Lebanonannounced shortly after by an official army press release (see above).

– Israeli officials told Axios the incursion would be “targeted and limited in time and scale, and is not intended to occupy southern Lebanon”.

– In parallel with this incursion, Israeli aircraft carried out an unprecedented strike on the Palestinian refugee camp of Aïn el-Héloué, on the edge of Saida, targeting the leader of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed branch of Fateh, Mounir Maqdahwho would have escaped this assassination attempt. According to an initial assessment, this strike caused at least six dead, including Hassan Maqdah’s son and three children, and several injured. On August 21, Mounir Maqdah’s brother was killed in a targeted strike in Saida. Israel began targeting senior Palestinian officials in Lebanon on the night of Sunday to Monday, killing in a first strike in the heart of Beirut, in Cola, three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and in the refugee camp of ‘el-Bass, near Tyre, the leader of Hamas in Lebanon, Fateh Cherif Amine and his family.

– Israeli airstrikes were also carried out “from the occupied Syrian Golan, targeting several sites in Damascus.” These bombings caused, saccording to the Syrian Minister of Defense, “three civilian deaths and nine injured”.

The reactions

– Faced with the renewed tensions Monday evening, the British government has indicated that it is chartering a flight to help British nationals wishing to leave Lebanon.

– France has set sail a French Navy vessel from Toulon to preposition itself off the coast of Lebanon as a “precaution” in the event of a need to evacuate French nationals. The French amphibious helicopter carrier (PHA) will take “5 to 6 days” to reach the area in the eastern Mediterranean from the port of Toulon, according to a source from the General Staff of the Armed Forces, cited by AFP.

– The White House said Monday evening believe “in the path towards a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon through a diplomatic resolution”.

– The Lebanese General Security announced Monday that Lebanese are allowed to travel to Iraq with only their identity card.

– Canada, for its part, reserved “800 seats” on commercial flights to help its nationals leave Lebanon “over the next three days”.

The context

– This Israeli land incursion into South Lebanon comes a week after the Jewish state launched a vast military air operation in South Lebanon and the Bekaa. An operation which left nearly 600 dead in one day on Monday and more than a thousand killed throughout the week.

– What followed a massive raid in the southern suburbs of Beirut early Friday evening targeting and killing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallahbefore a night of intensive strikes on this suburb.

-The Israeli army has continued in recent days its bombing campaign in South Lebanon and the Bekaavisibly preparing the ground to carry out this incursion.

– Since the opening, on October 8 by Hezbollah, of the “support front” for Hamas in Gaza, the conflict between Israel and the Shiite party has resulted, on the Lebanese side, nearly 2,000 dead, 10,000 injured and a million displaced.

To read

“Gaza is far away. Now it’s happening to us”: in Aïn el-Delb, incomprehension and fear

“I am so angry with Iran”: a feeling of abandonment spreads to the Shiite streets in Lebanon

In Lebanon, a world collapsed

Faced with the tidal wave of displaced people, the overwhelmed solidarity of the Lebanese

“We had two gods, one is dead”: astonishment among the displaced of Beirut

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