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Hezbollah accuses Israel of hacking into video surveillance cameras installed in homes and stores in southern Lebanon, and calls on residents to disconnect these devices from the Internet.
"The enemy recently hacked into civilian cameras connected to the Internet and installed in front of homes, stores and institutions in front-line villages," the party said in a statement.
The United States announced today that it is imposing sanctions on the head of a financial intermediary in Yemen and monetary exchange facilities from Yemen and Turkey. The sanctions are in response to accusations that these intermediaries are facilitating Iranian financial assistance to the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The Houthis have been targeting international commercial ships in the Red Sea, destabilizing the area, which the US says is in clear violation of international law.
According to a US Treasury press release, the individual and the exchange houses transferred millions of dollars to the Houthis in coordination with Sa'id al-Jamal, a Houthi financial facilitator based in Iran and backed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force.
The sanctions block access to US property and bank accounts and prevent the targeted person and companies from doing business with Americans.
An Israeli air strike killed 20 Palestinians and wounded 55 others in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Gaza health ministry spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qidra says, cited in a Reuters report.
Here are some quotes from Abu Obeida, the spokesperson for Hamas' military wing the al-Qassam Brigades, selected and translated from an audio recording aired on Al Jazeera:
• "Our primary focus is halting Israeli aggression against our people; no other priority takes precedence."
• "We won't entertain any deals until the aggression against our people completely ceases."
• "Numerous images showcasing our fighters targeting enemy soldiers and vehicles have been released, representing only a fraction of our actions."
• "825 Israeli vehicles have been destroyed since the onset of the Gaza aggression."
• "Our people will emerge from this aggression with their dignity intact."
Updates from southern Lebanon:
• Israeli artillery targeted the southern neighborhood of the town of Maroun al-Ras, Bint Jbeil district, with two shells, security sources told L'Orient Today. No injuries have been reported.
• An Israeli tank fired a shell on the town of Ainata, Bint Jbeil district without causing any injuries.
The Israeli army says it attacked infrastructure used by Hezbollah in several areas in southern Lebanon today, using fighter jets, tanks and artillery fire, Haaretz reports.
Throughout the late afternoon and early evening, we reported intensive Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, citing security sources and testimonies from local residents in the towns targeted.
The Israeli army also alleges that it had attacked a squad that was trying to launch anti-tank missiles across the border at Israel, as well as a squad that was inside a building from which shots were being fired.
In a meeting with caretaker Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron expressed concern that "the continued Israeli provocations in southern Lebanon could lead to a deterioration of the situation and trigger a wider war in the region."
He also stated that "the escalation of conflict in Lebanon, the Red Sea, or across the region increases risks and insecurity globally."
During a phone call with the French Foreign Minister Catherine Colona, Mikati expressed "his concern about the escalation of Israeli aggression against southern Lebanon and the targeting of civilians."
"The persistence of these attacks could draw Lebanon into a broader confrontation that could affect all countries in the region," warned Mikati, urging for "pressure to be exerted on Israel to halt its violations."
Israel has given preliminary approval to Cyprus for a maritime humanitarian corridor to ship aid to the besieged and war-torn Gaza Strip, the foreign ministry says, according to reports from AFP.
The proposal, in the works for more than a month, aims to deliver large quantities of badly needed aid to Palestinians in Gaza.
Gaza's 2.4 million people are suffering chronic shortages of water, food, fuel and medicine, with only limited aid entering the Palestinian coastal territory, which has been under Israeli blockade since 2007. Israeli authorities inspect every delivery of aid into the enclave.
The Israeli war cabinet is set to convene tonight to address, for the first time, Gaza's post-war future, Haaretz reports. The war cabinet will discuss a plan presented by the Israeli National Security Headquarters outlining steps to be taken once the conflict ends. Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote in a post on X that the war Cabinet's role is to determine post-war policy, stressing that discussions about Gaza's future belong within this specific cabinet, not the broader conceptual cabinet led by Minister Benny Ganz.
In southern Lebanon, in the last 15 minutes:
• Israeli aircraft targeted locations on the outskirts of Humin al-Tahta and Roumin, both located in Nabatieh district.
• Residents in the town of Humin al-Tahta heard four explosions and saw a red glow emanating from the targeted area.
A two-floor house in Ramieh was targeted by the Israeli army at 12 p.m. today and two shops that were filled with sanitary appliances were also targeted, one of the residents in Ramieh, Bint Jbeil district, told L'Orient Today.
Roads were blocked as a result of the shelling on Ramieh, reported by L'Orient Today earlier, and UNIFIL members arrived on the scene to open the road between Ramieh and Naqoura, in Sour district.
Two families narrowly escaped a rocket fired on the Jamaa neighbourhood in Ainatha, Bint Jbeil district, which struck the balcony of their house, according to residents who spoke to our correspondent in the south.
An Israeli drone targeted the southern Lebanese town, landing about sixty meters away from the al-Risala Health Emergency Center, affiliated with the Amal Movement. As of now, no casualties have been reported.
The Israeli artillery fired flares on the outskirts around Hula, Nabatieh district; Mais al-Jabal, Nabatieh district; and Mhaibib, Marjayoun district, in what residents of the area believe to be an attempt to ignite wildfires in the forests there, according to reporting from L'Orient Today's correspondent in the south.
"The role of resistance in Lebanon and Iraq, alongside Yemen and Iran, in addition to Gaza's and the West Bank's resistance, is an influential factor in thwarting... [the Israeli and US] project in the Middle East," says Hezbollah deputy leader Naim Qassem, speaking during a ceremony honoring one of the party's members, killed in recent fighting.
"The entire coalition of evil, represented by America, Israel, France, Britain, Italy, Germany, and others, must be confronted by the coalition of good represented by the resistance in Palestine, Lebanon, the region, and its honorable countries like Iran, Yemen, Iraq, and others," Qassem said.
Referring to Hezbollah, Qassem added that "Israel was deterred for 17 years since 2006 due to the resistance that obstructed its expansionist project."
(Photo courtesy of Hezbollah press bureau)
Currently happening in southern Lebanon:
• An Israeli drone fired a missile on the outskirts of Yarin, Sour district, security sources and local residents told L'Orient Today
• Continuous artillery shelling is targeting the villages of Tyr Harfa , Jibbin , Dhaira, Alma al-Shaab, and Ain al-Zarqa, all located in the Sour district
Intensive shelling by Israeli artillery is taking place on the outskirts of Tyr Harfa , Jibbin , Dhaira, Alma al-Shaab, and Ain al-Zarqa, all located in Sour district, security sources told L'Orient Today. A drone fired a missile on the outskirts of the town of Aitaroun, Bint Jbeil district, eyewitnesses from the town told L'Orient Today.
Israeli artillery shelling targeted the outskirts of Jibbin and Majdal Zoun, both located in the Sour district, and Yater, Bint Jbeil district, a security source told L'Orient Today.
According to local residents, Israeli artillery shelling targeted the outskirts of Aitaroun, Bint Jbeil district, and the outskirts of Hula, Nabatieh district.
The vicinity of the river of al-Chaghouriyeh, the town of Kfarhamam, the valley of Ebel and the Kfarshouba hills, all located in Hasbaya district, are being subjected to Israeli artillery shelling, eyewitnesses told our correspondent in the south.
Residents in the town of Khiam, Marjeyoun district, told L'Orient Today that the town's plains and its outskirts are being subjected to Israeli artillery shelling.
An Israeli drone has fired a missile at the valley in the outskirts of southern Lebanese town Bayt Lif, Bint Jbeil district, a security source told our correspondent, Muntasser Abdallah.
Egypt says it has yet to receive a response to a three-stage Gaza cease-fire proposal, Reuters reports. Egypt confirms that they have not received responses from Israel or Hamas to the proposal and will provide details about the plan once the parties respond, said Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt's State Information Service.
Hezbollah announces that it targeted, at around 3:30 p.m., "the al-Samaqa site in the occupied Lebanese farms of Shebaa with appropriate weapons, achieving direct hits and causing injuries."
According to a security source, two missiles of the 12 that were launched in this attack were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome, while the rest landed in their intended sites.
Yesterday, Hezbollah launched a record number of missiles over the border towards Israel, while today, this is only its first announcement of an attack.
Several rockets were launched from the heights of Kfar Shuba, Hasbaya district, in Lebanon, towards Israeli positions across the border, security sources told our correspondent in the south.
According to Haaretz, sirens were heard in northern Israel. Israeli artillery shelling targeted the southern hill of the town of Khiyam, Nabatieh district, residents told our correspondent.
Latest updates in southern Lebanon:
Two Israeli shells fell between the towns of Ramiah and Beit Lif (Bint Jbeil), residents told our correspondent in the South.
Moreover, an Israeli tank fired two shells on the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab and one of them hit a house.
A Palestinian man mourns over the body of a relative killed in an Israeli strike at the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis on the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 28, 2023, amid continuing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (Credit: AFP)
The Gazan Health Ministry announced that Israeli military operations in Gaza have left 21,320 dead since the war began on Oct. 7, Reuters reports.
Ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qudra also reported 55,603 injured during the same period, adding that 210 people had been killed in the last 24 hours.
Israeli army Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee said that a drone that infiltrated Israel from Lebanon was intercepted by Israel's air defenses.
According to al-Arabiya, a big explosion was heard in the bay of Haifa and a drone was shot down.
Prior to that, sirens were activated in Acre and in areas near Haifa, according to Haaretz.
With fighting between Hezbollah and Israel intensifying, the specter of war has begun to loom large.
Click here to read about how the foreign press are viewing this tense situation.
A group of young men blocked the path of a UNIFIL patrol that belongs to the French battalion in the town of Kfar Kila (Marjayoun) and forced it to retreat after hitting their vehicle with iron bars, state-run National News Agency reported.
According to NNA, the issue was then resolved and no injuries were reported in the incident.
A UNIFIL spokesperson told L'Orient Today that "around 9 a.m., peacekeepers...were blocked for about four minutes as they traveled through Kfar Kila" but they managed to move on "after a brief discussion with locals."
Last night, a UNIFIL peacekeeper was hurt and a vehicle was damaged after a patrol was attacked by a group of young men in Taybeh.
Israeli warplanes have carried out four raids so far on the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab, on the town of Ramieh and between Ramieh (Bint Jbeil district) and Marwahin (Sour).
UNRWA announced that an evacuation order by Israeli authorities of middle Gaza is causing an ongoing forced displacement.
"Over 150,000 people – young children, women carrying babies, people with disabilities & the elderly – have nowhere to go", UNRWA posted on X.
The agency added that the "only remaining hope is humanitarian cease-fire."
Three Israeli raids targeted the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab (Bint Jbeil), a security source told our correspondent in southern Lebanon.
Laundry hangs on makeshift shelters as children play at a camp for displaced Palestinians in Rafah on the southern Gaza strip on Dec. 28, 2023, amid continuing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (Credit: Mahmud Hams/AFP)
Fifty Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes in the Gaza towns of Beit Lahia, Khan Younis and Maghazi on Thursday, the Hamas health ministry in the Palestinian enclave said, Reuters reports.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) stated around half an hour ago that a peacekeeper was hurt and a vehicle was damaged last night after a "patrol was attacked by a group of young men in Taybeh, south Lebanon."
"We call on the Lebanese authorities to undertake a full and swift investigation, and for all perpetrators to be brought to justice," UNIFIL added.
L'Orient Today reported earlier that an incident occurred in Taybeh between local residents and a patrol of the Indonesian contingent of the UNIFIL. A soldier was injured by stone-throwing, residents told our correspondent in southern Lebanon.
A report by the United Nations, issued Thursday, noted that the human rights situation in the occupied West Bank was deteriorating and urged Israel to "end unlawful killings" against the Palestinian people, AFP reports.
"The use of military tactics and weapons in law enforcement contexts, the use of unnecessary or disproportionate force, and the enforcement of broad, arbitrary and discriminatory movement restrictions that affect Palestinians are extremely troubling," UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed an order declaring five money exchange offices in the West Bank as "terrorist organizations," according to Haaretz.
Subsequently, Israeli security forces raided nine branches of these exchanges, freezing millions of shekels they claim were intended for Hamas and the Islamic Jihad in Gaza and the West Bank.
Additionally, around 20 Palestinians were arrested on suspicion of "transferring funds to terrorist organizations" through the guise of exchange offices, presenting themselves as financial service providers.
Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen said that the Israeli ambassador to Turkey will not return to Ankara as long as Recep Tayyip Erdogan is Turkey's president, according to Haaretz.
Cohen spoke to Israeli public radio Reshet Bet and said that "Erdogan is ungrateful. Last February, we provided aid to Turkey, even opened a field hospital there. We see Erdogan's irresponsible conduct, who is, by the way, aligning himself with Hamas, who [German] Chancellor Schulz defined as the 'new Nazis.'"
Erdogan compared yesterday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Hitler.
The Israeli embassy in South Korea removed from its social networks a video showing masked attackers attacking South Korean civilians in Seoul, an allusion to Hamas deemed "inappropriate" by the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"The killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians by Hamas is unjustifiable, but the Israeli Embassy's production and distribution of a video drawing parallels with the security situation in another country was deemed inappropriate," Seoul said in a statement sent to AFP on Thursday.
“We have conveyed our position to the Israeli Embassy in South Korea, and they have taken steps to remove the video in question,” it was written.
In southern Lebanon:
- No reports from our security sources mention Israeli strikes so far, but Israeli reconnaissance flights have been reported over Lebanon.
- During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, several Israeli strikes were however reported in southern Lebanon, particularly around Dhaira, Khiam and Alma al-Shaab.
- An incident was reported in Taybeh according to residents, between local residents and a patrol of the Indonesian contingent of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). A soldier was injured by stone-throwing, according to these testimonies.
In other parts of the region:
- Near the Lebanese border, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, a drone crashed during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, the Israeli army told AFP after a nebula of fighters from pro-armed groups -Iran claimed responsibility for an attack on this sector.
- Iran on Wednesday threatened Israel with "direct actions and others carried out by the resistance front," after the death of Razi Mousavi, one of its high-ranking officers, on Monday in a strike in Syria, which it blames on Israel.
The situation in Palestine:
- The Israeli army is concentrating its operations this morning on the center of the Gaza Strip despite a critical situation for civilians, calls for a cease-fire and a possible "expansion" of operations on the border with Lebanon, reports AFP. The general staff of the Israeli army warned of an intensification of shooting along the border with Lebanon. Israeli army chief of staff Herzi Halevi said Israeli forces "are at a very high state of readiness for an expansion of fighting in the north."
- In addition to the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces are increasing raids at night in major cities in the occupied West Bank, notably in Jenin and Ramallah, where Mahmoud Abbas's Palestinian Authority is based, according to the official Wafa agency.
Be sure that you read the Morning Brief so that you are caught up with what has been happening.
Good morning!
Thank you for joining us for our live coverage of day 83 of the ongoing war between Hamas and Israel in Gaza.
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