Lebanon’s prime minister calls for ceasefire with Israel

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, left, meets with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 01 October 2024
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Lebanon’s prime minister calls for ceasefire with Israel

  • France, the UAE begin relief efforts
  • Hezbollah’s deputy chief vows to keep fighting

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati called for a ceasefire on Monday in the fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah during a meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in Beirut.

According to a statement from his office, Mikati said: “The key to the solution is to put an end to the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and to revive the appeal launched by the United States and France … in favor of a ceasefire.”

As Israel deploys troops in preparation for a potential ground incursion into Lebanon, and amid the ongoing displacement in the south, Bekaa and Beirut’s southern suburbs, Barrot held discussions in Beirut with Lebanese officials, politicians, religious leaders, and the army.

In a statement issued by the French Embassy, Barrot affirmed that “in the face of the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, France stands alongside Lebanon and remains committed to protecting civilians, and the security of its citizens.”

Barrot emphasized “France’s support for Lebanon and its people,” adding that “his country is keen on supporting the Lebanese army and helping it during these critical times.”

The plane carrying the French official to Beirut had brought “12 tonnes of medicines and medical supplies in response to emergencies and general medical needs, particularly pediatric care.”

The embassy said that the relief operation was carried out in cooperation with the EU.

During his meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi, Barrot focused on the “importance of electing a president as a foundation and priority, while emphasizing the need for stopping the war.”

Walid Ghayyad, the media official at the patriarchate, said that Barrot’s visit was “one of solidarity and reconnaissance, aimed at pushing forward key issues.”

Mikati reiterated during his meeting with Barrot that “the gateway to a solution is stopping the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and returning to the call made by the US and France, with the support of the EU and Arab and foreign countries, for a ceasefire.”

He stressed that “the priority is the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701.”

He added: “Once the ceasefire is in effect, we are ready to send the army to the area south of the Litani River to fully carry out its duties in coordination with the international peacekeeping forces in the south.”

Barrot spoke of the “priority of electing a president and working to stop the armed confrontations.”

Barrot announced during his meeting with Health Minister Firass Abiad “the launch of emergency humanitarian aid worth €10 million to support the work of humanitarian organizations on the ground, most notably the Lebanese Red Cross.”

The diplomatic meetings went ahead as the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan ordered urgent relief aid to the Lebanese people, valued at $100 million, the Emirates News Agency reported.

In the first appearance of a Hezbollah official since the assassination of Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah last Friday, Sheikh Naim Qassem, the group’s deputy secretary-general, said in a televised speech: “We will choose a new secretary-general at the earliest opportunity and we will fill leadership positions.

“The brothers continue their work according to the organized structure, and work with alternative plans for individuals and leaders.

“In Hezbollah’s structure there are deputies for the leaders and backup alternatives ready if a leader in any position is incapacitated.”

Qassem added: “Despite losing several leaders, the attacks on civilians, and the great sacrifices, we will not budge an inch from our positions.

“The Islamic resistance will continue to confront the Israeli enemy in support of Gaza and Palestine and defense of Lebanon and its people.”

Qassem stressed that “Hezbollah remains committed to its struggle, and we are fully prepared for a ground engagement and to enter this battle, and we will emerge victorious from it.”

His defiant stance came as Israel killed the leader of Hamas in Lebanon, Fateh Sherif Abu Al-Amin, inside the El Buss camp in the city of Tyre.

His wife, Umayya Ibrahim Abdel Hamid, his son Amin and his daughter Wafaa were also killed in the airstrike that targeted his residence.

Hamas said Abu Al-Amin was “a member of the Hamas leadership abroad.”

An attack on Palestinian leaders in Lebanon occurred at dawn when an Israeli drone targeted a residential apartment in the Cola area of central Beirut, which is close to the Palestinian camps in the city.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine said that three of its members were killed in the attack, which claimed four lives in total and injured four others, according to the Ministry of Health.

The killing of dozens of civilians has also continued in the face of Israeli airstrikes targeting residential buildings.

Additionally, bombing took place targeting Hezbollah’s supply routes in the high Lebanese mountains, particularly those connecting the Bekaa to other regions. The road to Ainata-Al Ariz was also bombed for the first time.

Five members of the Civil Defense in the Islamic Health Organization, affiliated with Hezbollah, were killed early on Monday in an airstrike targeting their facilities in the town of Sohmor in the Western Bekaa region.

The death toll from an airstrike on a residential building in the town of Ain Al-Dalab, east of the city of Sidon, has risen to 45 with 70 others reported injured, according to the Ministry of Health.

Three people were killed in another raid on Monday on the outskirts of Bnaafoul in the Sidon district.

Further raids on towns in Tyre district resulted in one death and several injuries.

In the Hermel area of the Bekaa two missiles struck residential buildings, resulting in the deaths of 12 people and 20 members of the Hassan Al-Jawhari family receiving injuries.

The Israeli army also carried out a raid on the Syrian Jdeidet Yabous border crossing with Lebanon, targeting a group transporting Hezbollah members across the border, which led to the killing of the group’s transportation official and his driver.

In retaliation, Hezbollah said it bombed the Naoura base with a salvo of Fadi-2 missiles.

 


At least 58 corpses found in Libyan hospital, ministry says

Updated 20 May 2025
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At least 58 corpses found in Libyan hospital, ministry says

  • The corpses found on Monday are the second set of unidentified remains discovered in recent days

TRIPOLI: At least 58 unidentified corpses were found on Monday in a hospital in Tripoli that was under the control of a militia whose leader was killed last week, the interior ministry said.
The corpses were found in a morgue refrigerator in Abu Salim Accidents Hospital in the densely populated Abu Salim neighborhood, following a report from the hospital, the ministry said in a statement.
Pictures of corpses with numbers and censored faces were posted by the ministry, showing remains in various states of decomposition on steel carriers and beds. Some of the remains were burnt. An investigation was underway to establish the identities of the deceased.
“So far, 23 corpses have been examined, and all necessary legal procedures have been taken, including documenting data and collecting samples,” the ministry said.
Abu Salim was home to a militia known as the Stabilization Support Apparatus, whose chief, Abdulghani Kikli, widely known as Ghaniwa, was killed in unconfirmed circumstances last Monday.
Kikli’s killing led to the sudden defeat of the SSA by factions aligned to internationally recognized Prime Minister Abdulhamid Al-Dbeibah of the Government of National Unity (GNU).
On Tuesday, Dbeibah ordered armed groups to be dismantled, triggering the fiercest clashes Tripoli had seen in years between two armed groups. The clashes killed at least eight civilians, according to the United Nations.
The corpses found on Monday are the second set of unidentified remains discovered in recent days. On Saturday, officials said nine corpses had been found in a morgue refrigerator in Al-Khadra hospital, another SSA-controlled hospital in the Abu Salim neighborhood.
The militia had not reported the corpses to the relevant authorities, the interior ministry said.
Dbeibah said on Saturday that eliminating militias was an “ongoing project,” as a ceasefire after last week’s clashes remained in place.
The GNU posted a video on Monday showing bulldozers demolishing the so-called 77 camp, one of the biggest facilities that was under control of SSA. The camp is to be turned into a national park.
Libya has had little stability since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising ousted longtime autocrat Muammar Qaddafi. The country split in 2014 between rival eastern and western factions, though an outbreak of major warfare paused with a truce in 2020.


Netanyahu says UK-French-Canada condemnation gives ‘huge prize’ to Hamas

Updated 20 May 2025
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Netanyahu says UK-French-Canada condemnation gives ‘huge prize’ to Hamas

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday hit back at condemnation of his country’s military offensive in Gaza by the leaders of France, Canada and Britain saying they had given a “huge prize” to Hamas.
“By asking Israel to end a defensive war for our survival before Hamas terrorists on our border are destroyed and by demanding a Palestinian state, the leaders in London, Ottawa and Paris are offering a huge prize for the genocidal attack on Israel on October 7 while inviting more such atrocities,” Netanyahu said in a statement, referring to the October 2023 attack that set off the Gaza war.


Palestinian hospital chief calls for pressure on Israel

Updated 20 May 2025
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Palestinian hospital chief calls for pressure on Israel

HELSINKI: An East Jerusalem hospital chief told AFP on Monday that Gaza was in a “catastrophic” state after weeks of a complete blockade of humanitarian aid and called on countries to act to end the suffering of civilians.
Fadi Atrash, chief executive of the Augusta Victoria-Hospital in East Jerusalem — which helps Palestinians from the occupied territories and Gaza — said he could no longer “find the words” to describe the crisis faced by people in war-torn Gaza.
“We are facing a very, very critical and catastrophic situation,” he said, with all components of the health care system destroyed, and health care workers “running out of energy.”
Augusta Victoria, which had a hospital in Gaza that has been destroyed in Israeli bombings now provides health care in Gaza with the limited resources available, Atrash said.
Atrash visited Finland — which has not recognized Palestine as a state — on Monday as part of a tour of the Nordic countries.
“My main message for the Nordic countries is to put pressure to stop the war, to stop the killing.”
Humanitarian food, medical and fuel supplies have been blocked from entering Gaza for 11 weeks, and the World Health Organization has warned that two million people face starvation.
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb joined other European leaders on Monday to call on Israel to guarantee the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Stubb also said “forced displacement of populations is a war crime and cannot form part of any solution,” in a post on X.
Israel this month approved an expanded military offensive in Gaza but has agreed to let limited aid into Gaza.


Gaza civil defense says 91 killed in Israeli strikes Monday

Updated 20 May 2025
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Gaza civil defense says 91 killed in Israeli strikes Monday

GAZA CITY: A Gaza civil defense official said that 91 people were killed in strikes and attacks throughout Monday as Israel steps up an offensive in the Palestinian territory.
The deaths had been recorded since the early hours of Monday, according to Mohammed Al-Mughayyir, an official in the civil defense agency of the Hamas-run territory. The department had earlier given a toll of 52 dead.


Yemen’s Houthis threaten Israeli port

Updated 20 May 2025
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Yemen’s Houthis threaten Israeli port

SANAA: Yemen’s Houthis said Monday that they would target Haifa port in Israel as part of a “naval blockade” in response to Israeli escalation in the Gaza war.
The Houthis would “begin working to enforce a naval blockade of the port of Haifa,” said military spokesman Yehya Saree.
“All companies with ships present in or heading to this port are hereby notified that, as of the time of this announcement, the aforementioned port has been included in the target bank,” the Houthi spokesman added.
The move was “in response to the Israeli enemy’s escalation of its brutal aggression against our people and in Gaza,” he said, adding their attacks on Israel would “cease once the aggression on Gaza ends and the blockade is lifted.”
Earlier on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country will “take control” of the whole of Gaza, as rescuers reported dozens killed in a newly intensified offensive.