at least 48 dead Monday in Israeli strikes on the East

Israel wants more peace agreements with Arab countries after the war, five dead in Lebanon after an Israeli strike, South Africa filed its request for “evidence” of “genocide” committed by Israel before the ICJ… Le Figaro takes stock of the latest information on tensions in the Middle East.

Lebanon: at least 48 dead Monday in Israeli strikes on the East

At least 48 people, including a child, were killed Monday in several “Israeli raids” targeting five localities in eastern Lebanon, according to a non-exhaustive report from the Lebanese Ministry of Health, referring to the bombings in the Baalbeck region, a stronghold of Hezbollah.

Monday is “the most violent day for Baalbeck” since the start of the war, provincial governor Bachir Khodr estimated on X. The Ministry of Health gives the victim reports for five localities. He cites in particular a “raid by the Israeli enemy” on Al-Allaq which left ten people dead. Five people, including a child, were killed in a similar strike in the town of Bodai.

Biden says war in Gaza ‘must stop’

The war in Gaza “must stop”Joe Biden told reporters on Monday after voting early for the US presidential election in Wilmington (Delaware, east).

“We need a ceasefire. We must stop this war. She has to stop, she has to stop, she has to stop.”underlined the American president. He added that he would take stock of ongoing efforts towards a ceasefire, following the Egyptian proposal for a two-day truce in the Palestinian Territory presented as the first step towards a ceasefire. -complete fire.

Netanyahu says he has not received a proposal for a two-day truce

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not received a proposal for the release of hostages held in Gaza in exchange for a two-day truce in the Palestinian territory, his spokesperson said on Monday.

During a parliamentary meeting of his party, Likud, Benjamin Netanyahu indicated that Israel had not “did not receive a proposal on the release of four hostages in exchange for a 48-hour ceasefire in Gaza”Omer Dostri said in a press release. “If this proposal had been made, the Prime Minister would have immediately accepted it”he added, referring to the proposal announced on Sunday by Egypt.

Israeli Parliament approves law banning UNRWA activities in Israel

The Israeli Parliament voted Monday overwhelmingly in favor of a bill banning the activities of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in Israel, despite objections from the United States and the UN. The text was approved in the Knesset by 92 votes to 10 while Israel, long very critical of the UN agency, accused certain UNRWA employees of having participated in the Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023 and being fighters of the Palestinian Islamist movement.

The agency denounced a vote all the more “scandalous” that he comes from a United Nations member country and that UNRWA “proves to be the main actor in humanitarian operations in Gaza”devastated by more than a year of war between Israel and Hamas, its spokesperson, Juliette Touma, told AFP. “If adopted and implemented, it is a disaster, not least because of the impact it will likely have on humanitarian operations in Gaza and several parts of the West Bank.”she said.

Israel says it is discussing a new “agreement plan” on the release of hostages

Israel said Monday it was discussing a new “agreement plan” on the release of hostages held in Gaza, upon the return of its chief negotiator from Qatar, according to a press release from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Mossad Director David Barnea returned after meeting with the head of the CIA and the Qatari Prime Minister (…) In the coming days, discussions will continue between the mediators and Hamas to examine the feasibility of the talks and continue to try to move them towards an agreement”affirms the office of Benjamin Netanyahu, after the proposal from Egypt, one of the mediator countries, of a two-day truce and the release of four hostages against Palestinian prisoners.

Israel’s strikes on Iran have ‘changed the balance of power,’ says Israeli defense minister

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Monday that Israel’s strikes on Iran on Saturday had “changed the balance of power” between the two sworn enemies. “The enemy has been weakened, both in its ability to build missiles and in its ability to defend itself. “It changed the balance of power.”declared Yoav Gallant, according to a press release published by the Ministry of Defense.

Revolutionary Guards warn Israel of ‘bitter consequences’ after attack

This Monday, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Hossein Salami, warned Israel against “bitter consequences” after its strikes on Saturday on military sites in Iran, according to the Tasnim news agency. General Salami, head of the ideological army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, said that Israel had not “failed to achieve its hideous objectives” with these raids, speaking of“a bad calculation” and threatening him with “bitter and unimaginable consequences”.

Iranian diplomacy promises a “firm response” to the Israeli attack. “We are using all available means to respond firmly and effectively to the aggression of the Zionist regime”announced the spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaïl Baghaï, in his weekly conference.

Netanyahu says he ‘aspires’ to normalize relations with Arab countries

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that he wanted to continue diplomatic normalization efforts with Middle Eastern countries based on the Abraham Accords, in order to “achieve peace with other Arab countries”. “I aspire to continue the process that I began a few years ago with the historic signing of the Abraham Accords to achieve peace with other Arab countries”he said in front of the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament.

US-brokered deals in 2020 saw Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan establish formal ties with Israel, raising hopes of normalization with regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia. “We have signed four peace agreements, I emphasize, peace for peace (…) with important countries in the Middle East”he continued. “These countries and others see clearly the blows we inflict on those who attack us, the Iranian axis of Evil”assured the Prime Minister, two days after an Israeli strike on military objectives in Iran, its sworn enemy.

Hezbollah says it targeted Israeli soldiers in southern village

Lebanese Hezbollah said it fired rockets at Israeli soldiers on Monday in a village in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel. Since September 30, the Israeli army has been carrying out a ground offensive in southern Lebanon, a stronghold of Hezbollah. In a statement, the Lebanese movement said its fighters had targeted “enemy soldiers” near the village of Wazzani, with a salvo of rockets”, after earlier targeting Israeli troops in the border area four times.

Hezbollah also claimed to have fired rockets at a naval base near the city of Haifa in northern Israel, while the Israeli army carried out several strikes in southern Lebanon, including on the city of Tire. . A “rocket salvo” was shot “on the Stella Maris naval base northwest of Haifa”specified the Lebanese Islamist movement in a press release.

115 projectiles were fired into northern Israel on Monday

Environ 115 «projectiles» were fired into northern Israel by Hezbollah from Lebanon on Monday, the Israeli army said. At 4:00 p.m. local time, “around 115 projectiles fired by the terrorist organization Hezbollah crossed (the border) from Lebanon into Israel”said in a statement the army, which launched a ground operation at the end of September to push away from the border the Lebanese Islamist movement supported by Iran which fires rockets daily at Israel.

Israel: “huge contract” to develop laser anti-aircraft defense

The Israeli Ministry of Defense announced on Monday the award of a “huge contract” approximately $530 million to several Israeli companies to accelerate the development of the anti-aircraft laser system «Iron Beam». This system, which is added to other anti-aircraft defense means already used by Israel, should notably allow the army to intercept drones more effectively.

The latter, widely used by the Lebanese Islamist movement Hezbollah against Israel for a year, have repeatedly escaped Israeli air defense, causing civilian and military victims. “The Ministry of Defense signed a huge contract, worth about 2 billion shekels (about $530 million) for a significant expansion of equipment for laser interception systems (Iron Beam), with its main developer, the company Rafael, and with the company Elbit Systems”he said in a press release.

The director general of the ministry, Eyal Zamir, quoted in the press release, clarified that the laser anti-aircraft defense system should be “operational within a year”. The defense company Elbit, for its part, specified that the ministry had awarded it a contract worth around $200 million as part of the development of«Iron Beam» («Rayon laser»).