Protest at US embassy, countries tell citizens to leave Lebanon, cross-border strikes: Everything you need to know to start your Thursday

Want to get the Morning Brief by email? Click here to sign up.

Catch up on our LIVE coverage of Day 12 of the Hamas-Israel war here.

At least one protester was injured during a demonstration outside the US embassy in Awkar yesterday, amid a wave of protests across the region decrying the deadly bombing of the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza. Security forces and the Lebanese Army fired tear gas and water cannons at protesters who breached the barriers outside the US embassy, according to L’Orient Today’s reporter at the scene. US Embassy spokesperson Jake Nelson thanked security forces and said that the mission’s staff and facilities were unharmed, although protesters damaged private property in the area. In Beirut’s southern suburbs, demonstrators chanted against Israel and the US. Hundreds marched through the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in solidarity with Gaza. Sit-ins decrying the bombing were held outside hospitals across Lebanon, including one outside the Health Ministry in Beirut. Hezbollah Executive Council Head Hashem Safieddine said the party would respond “in the next few days” to Israel’s attempt to exonerate itself from the hospital bombing, calling it a “lie.” Israel claimed that the hospital bombing resulted from an Islamic Jihad misfiring, which the group denied. Hamas blamed an Israeli airstrike for the devastation of a hospital that killed at least 200 people on Tuesday evening and called on the international community to condemn the attack.

The British Embassy in Lebanon temporarily evacuated staff and their families, while France, the US, Australia, Sweden and Germany issued warnings to their citizens about the country’s security situation. Canada, France, Australia and Sweden warned citizens against non-essential trips to Lebanon, while Germany and the US urged its nationals to avoid all travel to the country. The German Embassy in Lebanon additionally warned against a potential shortage of essential supplies. Canada advised its citizens on Monday to leave Lebanon while commercial flights were still available. The German airline Lufthansa announced on Oct. 13 via its website that connection through Beirut would be suspended "until Oct. 22 inclusive." On Monday, Swiss Airlines also announced the suspension of its flights to Beirut until Oct. 28.

Hezbollah said its attack on the Israeli Army in the southern Lebanese border yesterday caused casualties. Hezbollah confirmed the death of fighter Ali Adnan Shokeir yesterday, after the party announced the death of five of its members the day before. The Associated Press reported that the Lebanese Red Cross collected the remains of four Hezbollah members killed on Tuesday, according to a Hezbollah spokesperson. A Hezbollah statement yesterday evening confirmed two attacks earlier that afternoon in Taihat, al-Malkiyya, the Israeli-occupied Shebaa farms and Ruwaysat al-Alm. Reuters reported that Israel retaliated to the shots fired at its military posts in Zarit. Yesterday evening, Arabic spokesperson for the Israeli Army Avichay Adraee said they “destroyed two sites inside Lebanon that were monitored in an attempt to launch an anti-tank missile into Israeli territory” and that it also “attacked a site from which an anti-armor shell had been fired a short while ago towards the town of Metulla.” Since Oct. 7, cross-border fire between Hezbollah and Israel resulted in several deaths, injuries and property damage.

US President Joe Biden said he would ask Congress for an "unprecedented" aid package to Israel after his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and pledged additional humanitarian assistance of $100 million for Gaza and the West Bank. After Biden’s visit, Israel reportedly said it would allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade preventing access to electricity, water, fuel and food. The World Health Organization (WHO) and UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for guaranteeing Gaza’s unimpeded access to humanitarian aid. Tons of aid shipments for Gaza remain stuck in Egypt amid Israeli bombardment of the Rafah crossing, the only access to the enclave it does not control. On Wednesday night, the US vetoed a UN Security Council resolution calling for humanitarian access to Gaza, the protection of civilians and condemning Hamas's attack on Israel, Reuters reported. Biden backed Israel’s claim that it was not responsible for the deadly bombing of the al-Ahli hospital in Gaza on Tuesday.

In case you missed it, here’s our must-read story from yesterday: “Iran vs. Israel: The game of chess becomes a game of poker”

Compiled by Abbas Mahfouz