• IDF ordered to destroy all bridges over Litani River • Key Qasmiyeh bridge near Tyre damaged in strikes • Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemns attacks, calling them a ‘prelude to a ground invasion’ BEIRUT: The Israeli military on Sunday announced it was expanding its ground campaign in Lebanon, warning of a lengthy operation, after Beirut condemned what it called Israel’s flagrant violations of Lebanese sovereignty. Israel struck a main bridge linking Lebanon’s south to the rest of the country on Sunday after ordering its military to destroy all crossings over the Litani River and to step up the demolition of homes near the southern border. The destruction of bridges and homes marks a significant escalation in Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon. International law generally prohibits militaries from attacking civilian infrastructure, and the United Nations human rights chief has criticised Israel’s actions in Lebanon, particularly its use of widespread evacuation orders that have displaced more than a ...
Forced by yet another Israeli bombardment on Lebanon to flee his home for the second time in just two years, and mourning lost relatives and friends, Hassan Kiki said he feels much older than 16. “War has aged us… We have lived through what no one else has,” the tall teen from south Lebanon told AFP in Beirut. “I miss my school, my friends… I lost two cousins and two friends in a massacre in Shehabiyeh,” he added, referring to a deadly Israeli strike in his town that killed at least seven people on March 11. Kiki is among more than a million people Lebanese authorities have registered as displaced since the country was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2. On that day, Hezbollah launched rockets towards Israel to avenge the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israel, which never stopped bombing Lebanon despite a 2024 truce that sought to end the last fighting with Hezbollah, responded with widespread strikes, ground operations along the border, and an evacuation warning for swa...
A SITE in the Haret Hreik, a neighbourhood in southern Beirut which was struck by Israel.—AFP • Death toll for paramedics this month rises to 31 after clinic bombing • France offers to host negotiations in Paris; urges Israel to halt its offensive • First direct talks since conflict expected in coming days, Haaretz reports BEIRUT: An overnight Israeli strike on a healthcare centre in Borj Qalaouiya killed at least 12 Lebanese medical personnel, Lebanon’s state news agency said on Saturday, as diplomatic efforts intensified amid reports Israel and Lebanon may hold their first direct talks to de-escalate the war. The health ministry said the death toll was preliminary, with rescue operations underway to search for those still missing under the rubble and the Israeli attack killed doctors, paramedics, and nurses working at the facility. This strike brings the total number of paramedics killed in Lebanon since the start of hostilities to 31, a grim statistic highlighted by the ministry as it accused Israel of rep...