The Israeli military says it killed a senior Hezbollah commander in a strike on Beirut while the militant group’s acting leader promised more fighting against Israeli troops.|
The Israeli military said Tuesday it killed a senior Hezbollah commander in a strike on Beirut while the militant group's acting leader promised more fighting against Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and rocket fire into Israel.
The military said the strike killed Suhail Husseini, who it said was responsible for overseeing logistics, budget and management of the group. There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah.
Sheikh Naim Kassem, the acting leader of Hezbollah, said in a defiant televised statement that his group's military capabilities are still intact. He said that Hezbollah has replaced all of its senior commanders after weeks of heavy Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon, including targeted strikes that killed much of its top command in a matter of days.
Palestinian militants in Gaza fired a barrage of rockets into Israel on Monday, the anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, underscoring their resilience in the face of a devastating Israeli offensive in Gaza that has killed about 42,000 people, according to local medical officials.
A year ago, Hamas-led militants blew holes in Israel’s security fence and stormed into army bases and farming communities, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. They are still holding about 100 captives inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel is now at war with Hamas in Gaza and its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, which began firing rockets at Israel on Oct. 8, 2023. On Monday, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said an Israeli strike in the country’s south, part of a wider bombardment, killed at least 10 firefighters. Hezbollah fired new barrages despite its recent losses.
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Here is the latest:
MILAN — A man attacked and followed the crew of Italy’s Tg3 public broadcaster as they filmed in southern Lebanon on Tuesday, trying to break the video camera. The crew’s driver died of a heart attack suffered during the confrontation.
Lucia Goracci, an international correspondent for the state broadcaster RAI’s third channel, said the crew was filming in a village north of the coastal city of Sidon that had been bombed two days ago, having signaled their presence to the local Hezbollah authority, when a man tried to grab the camera.
“We were filming without problems. People were speaking with us,’’ Goracci said on a midday broadcast. When the man lunged for the camera, they quickly returned to the car. “Others arrived and starting pushing the car. The first man tried to throw a huge stone at us,’’ she said.
They drove away quickly, apparently unaware the man was still following them. When they stopped at a gas station, he grabbed at the car keys and tried to break the video camera through the open windows. “No one came to help us,’’ Goracci said.
The driver collapsed as he pled with the attacker to leave them alone, Goracci said. He was taken to a hospital, where he died.
HELSINKI — Norway’s domestic security service said Tuesday that threats against Jewish and Israeli targets in the Scandinavian country have increased due to the escalation of the conflict.
That has prompted the Norwegian agency, known by its acronym PST, to raise its estimate of terror threat in Norway from moderate to high — standing now at level 4 on a scale from 1 to 5.
“There are several negative conditions that have increased the terrorist threat that are linked, among other things, to the ongoing escalation of the conflict in the Middle East,” PST spokesman Eirik Veum told the Norwegian news agency NTB.
“In Norway, it is primarily the threat to Jewish and Israeli targets that has further intensified,” he said.
He said the agency had no information about any concrete plans for attacks.
RIO DE JANEIRO — The second repatriation flight from Lebanon organized by the Brazilian government landed in Sao Paulo with 227 people, including 49 children, the Brazilian air force said.
On its journey to Lebanon, the plane chartered by the Brazilian air force took medical and hospital supplies donated by Brazil, the Foreign Ministry said, adding that more flights will follow.
About 21,000 Brazilians live in Lebanon, which is home to the largest community of Brazilians in the Middle East. Two Brazilian adolescents have been killed by Israeli bombardments in Lebanon.
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s foreign and defense ministers are briefing lawmakers in parliament about a claim made by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Israel would target Turkey after Gaza and Lebanon.
The country’s main opposition party has labeled the claim as implausible but nonetheless called for the meeting, which is being held behind closed doors. These discussions are classified as state secrets and will remain confidential for 10 years.
