UPDATE ON THE SITUATION – The Islamist movement said it had targeted a base in central Israel near Ben Gurion Airport. Another round of strikes hit Haifa, in the north of the Hebrew country.
Hezbollah fired around 120 projectiles into Israeli territory near Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday, November 6, before sending a new salvo of missiles and explosive drones at a naval base near the city of Haifa, in northern Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the newly elected American President Donald Trump discussed the “Iranian threat”. Le Figaro takes stock of the latest developments in the Middle East.
Hezbollah claims to have tens of thousands of fighters “trained” to confront Israel
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said Wednesday his group had tens of thousands of fighters “trained” to confront the Israeli army, warning that no place in Israel was “safe” missiles and drones from the pro-Iranian movement.
“We have tens of thousands of trained resistance fighters who can confront and hold their ground” facing Israel, he said in a televised speech marking 40 days since former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike. “No place in the Israeli entity is beyond the range of (our) drones and missiles”he added.
Around 120 projectiles fired by Hezbollah into Israeli territory
Lebanese Hezbollah also said it had fired missiles at an Israeli military base near Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport, the first such announcement since it entered into open war with Israel at the end of September. In a statement, the pro-Iranian Islamist movement said it had targeted the military base of «Tzrifin»located “near Ben Gurion Airport, south of Tel Aviv”in central Israel, with a salvo of missiles.
In total, 120 projectiles were fired, according to the Israeli army without saying how many fell in the country or how many were intercepted. At 4 p.m. local time (2 p.m. GMT), “around 120 projectiles fired by the terrorist organization Hezbollah crossed (the border) from Lebanon into Israel”the army said in a statement.
Later in the evening, Lebanese Hezbollah claimed to have launched explosive missiles and drones at a naval base near the northern Israeli city of Haifa, the fourth attack on the base in a month. In a statement, the pro-Iranian group said it had conducted a “complex attack” aiming “the Stella Maris naval base northwest of Haifa with a salvo of missiles and a squadron of drones”.
Strike on southern Beirut suburbs after Israeli army evacuation order
A strike targeted the southern suburbs of Beirut, stronghold of Lebanese Hezbollah, on Wednesday afternoon, shortly after an evacuation order from the Israeli army, according to images from AFPTV.
A thick column of black smoke rose from this area. The strike came shortly after the broadcast of a pre-recorded speech by the new leader of Hezbollah, Naïm Qassem.
IDF announces it intercepted a projectile fired from Gaza towards southern Israel
The Israeli army announced Wednesday evening that it had intercepted a projectile fired from Gaza towards southern Israel.
“Not long ago, the Air Force intercepted a projectile fired from the center of the Gaza Strip towards the Kissoufim area”a town close to Palestinian territory in southern Israel, the army said in a statement.
Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump discussed the “Iranian threat”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President-elect Donald Trump discussed the “Iranian threat” on Israel's security during a telephone exchange, Netanyahu's office announced.
“The conversation was friendly and cordial. The prime minister congratulated Trump on his election victory and the two (leaders) agreed to cooperate for Israel's security. They also discussed the Iranian threat.which supports Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah in war against Israel, the same source said.
Iraq says its territory will not be used for attacks
Iraqi authorities assured Wednesday that Iraq will not be used to launch “attacks” in an explosive regional context in the Middle East, where Iran threatens to retaliate to the latest strikes carried out by Israel on its territory.
“Reports reporting the use of Iraqi territory to launch attacks or respond to attacks are nothing but false pretexts”assured the Security Council of the Iraqi government in a press release. The American media Axios, relying on a source from “Israeli intelligence”had recently said that Iranian retaliations could start from “Iraqi territory”.
Beeper traps: Lebanon files complaint against Israel to the UN
Lebanon announced Wednesday that it had filed a complaint with the UN over deadly explosions of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies across the country in September, which it blames on Israel. Describing this attack as “blatant war against humanity, against technology, against work”the Lebanese Minister of Labor, Mustafa Bayram, indicated during a press conference in Geneva that his country had filed a complaint with the International Labor Organization (ILO), a specialized agency of the UN.
“This is a very dangerous precedent”he added in front of the correspondents of the Association of Journalists Accredited to the UN (ACANU) who organized the event. The move comes after Israel intensified its air raids on Hezbollah strongholds in South Lebanon, Beirut and the Bekaa Plain since September 23, after nearly a year of cross-border fire.
At least 40 dead Wednesday in Israeli strikes on eastern Lebanon
At least 40 people were killed Wednesday by Israeli strikes on eastern Lebanon, notably the town of Baalbek, where rescuers are still looking for survivors in the rubble, the Health Ministry announced in the evening.
“The series of strikes by the Israeli enemy on the Bekaa Valley and Baalbek” have killed “40 people and injured 53”indicated the ministry in a press release, specifying that this was a provisional assessment.
More than 2,600 dead in Lebanon since the escalation with Israel on September 23
More than 2,600 people have been killed in Lebanon since the start of the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah on September 23, the majority civilians, Health Minister Firass Abiad told AFP on Wednesday. “More than 2,600 people have been killed in Lebanon since September 23”date of the start of the massive bombing campaign in Lebanon, “mostly civilians”said the minister. This brings the total number of deaths in Lebanon to 3,000 since the start of the conflict in October 2023, according to him.
UNRWA is experiencing “its darkest hour”, denounces its leader to the UN
The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), which Israel has decided to ban, lives “his darkest hour”alerted its leader before the UN General Assembly, calling on member states to save it. “Without intervention from member states, UNRWA will collapse, plunging millions of Palestinians into chaos”declared Philippe Lazzarini, asking the member states of the Assembly, which created Unrwa in 1949, to “prevent the implementation of the law against UNRWA” voted by the Israeli parliament.
A week after Parliament passed a law banning UNRWA activities in Israel, Israel notified the UN on Monday “cancellation” of its agreement with the agency dating from 1967, the year that Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza, as well as East Jerusalem, began, where UNRWA provided essential aid to Palestinian refugees for decades – education, health, social services, food aid… “Today, I ask Member States to act to defend Palestinian refugees and UNRWA”insisted Philippe Lazzarini.
New strikes on south Beirut after evacuation orders from Israel
The south of the Lebanese capital Beirut suffered at least two strikes early Thursday, about an hour after the Israeli army called on residents of four neighborhoods considered Hezbollah strongholds to evacuate, according to AFPTV footage.
Images showed two plumes of smoke above southern Beirut and AFP journalists present in the capital heard loud detonations. Earlier, Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee asked residents in four southern Beirut neighborhoods to evacuate, including a site near Beirut International Airport.
