Gaza
The Red Crescent announced it had found 14 rescue workers killed after Israeli fire on ambulances in Gaza, reported AFP.
Gaza
Seven Palestinians, including three children, were killed by an Israeli air strike on a house in the al-Tuffah neighbourhood of northern Gaza City, according to Al-Jazeera.
A number of Palestinians were also wounded.
Syria
The autonomous Kurdish administration that controls areas in northern and northeastern Syria has challenged the legitimacy of the new government formed by the Islamist coalition that overthrew Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, AFP reported.
“Any government that does not reflect the diversity and plurality of the country will not be able to ensure sound management of Syria,” the administration said in a statement. “Consequently, we do not consider ourselves concerned by the application or execution of decisions from this government,” it added, the day after the announcement of its formation.
Hezbollah MP Hassan Ezzedine said from Kfar Roummane (Nabatieh) that "patience has limits," emphasizing that the "resistance is strong, capable, and ready for all possibilities." He highlighted the "failure of the international community," including the United Nations and Arab nations, to end the Israeli occupation of Lebanese land, noting that "only the resistance's efforts are the key to liberating the South."
His words reiterate the speech of Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem, who noted that if Israel continues to attack Lebanon and the state is not able to stop them, Hezbollah would "have to take matters into its own hands."
South Lebanon
Israeli artillery fired seven white phosphorus shells on the Wazzani area, in the Hasbaya district, and fired machine-guns at several areas on the outskirts of Kfar Shuba, in the same district.
An Israeli fighter jet also struck a residential area in Houla (Marjayoun district), without causing any injuries.
South Lebanon
Our correspondent in the South clarified reports by Al-Arabiya, which stated that Palestinians and Syrians were among those arrested by the Lebanese Army on Saturday in connection with its investigation into the rocket fire that triggered Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs.
He confirmed that several Syrian and Palestinian nationals were detained near the launch site of the missiles fired toward Israel from southern Lebanon. They were questioned but later released.
Gaza
⚡ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on Hamas to lay down its arms, assuring that its leaders could then leave Gaza, as Israel continues its deadly bombardment of the Palestinian territory.
Lebanon
A security source told al Arabiya that at least some of the suspects involved in Friday's rocket attacks, which gave Israel a reason to bomb the southern suburbs of Beirut, and who were arrested yesterday, were Syrian and Palestinian nationals, without providing further details.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel's increased military pressure on Hamas in Gaza "is working," emphasizing that the Palestinian Islamist movement must lay down its weapons. "Regarding Hamas in Gaza, the military pressure is working... We can see breaches starting to appear" in the negotiations, Netanyahu said at the beginning of a cabinet meeting. "Hamas must lay down its arms. Its leaders will then be allowed to leave," he added.
Gaza
Israeli military attacks in Gaza have so far killed 20 people, al-Jazeera reported citing health authorities. The victims include at least five children.
More than 920 Palestinians have been killed since Israel broke the truce with Hamas and launched relentless air attacks on March 18.
Israel
Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Hamas leaders in Gaza "will be allowed to leave" if they lay down their arms, according to AFP.
Syria/Turkey
Turkey has welcomed the formation of a transitional government in Syria, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today, adding that this decision was a sign that the new leaders of Syria have an inclusive approach to governing the country, according to Reuters.
The ministry stated in a statement that the international community must redouble efforts to support Syria, particularly by fully lifting sanctions so that reconstruction can begin. It added that Turkey, one of the main intermediaries for the Syrian government after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad by rebels, would continue to support the "comprehensive and inclusive" transitional period.
Israel
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, from the far-right, stated that Israel should retaliate against Iran every time the Houthis in Yemen launch missiles at Israel.
"When the Houthis, a terrorist branch of Iran, launch missiles at Israel, Israel must respond against Iran," he specifically said in a message posted on X today.
"Iran is the one who finances, arms, trains, and manages the Houthis. Iran has much to lose, while the Houthis have much less to lose. That's why Israel must strike Iran. Only in this way will Iran understand: you do not attack the Jewish state," he concluded.
Credit: Eyad Baba / AFP
Palestinians mourn at the grave of a relative after Eid al-Fitr prayers in the Nusseirat refugee camp, central Gaza.
Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit Hungary on April 2, his office announced, despite an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) over suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, according to AFP.
During his visit, Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other senior Hungarian officials before returning to Israel on April 6.
Israel
According to the Israeli police, as reported by several Israeli media outlets, fragments of shells from the interception of a missile by the Houthis were found today in several locations in the Jerusalem area, causing material damage.
South Lebanon
A fragile calm prevails this morning in South Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, according to our correspondents in these regions, Muntasser Abdallah and Sarah Abdallah. Both report continuous overflights of Israeli drones over these two regions.
During the night, the Israeli army bombed prefabricated houses in Kfar Kila (Marjayoun district), without causing any casualties.
Syria
Interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa announced last night the formation of a new government without a Prime Minister, in which his loyalists hold key positions, but which is intended to be inclusive and includes a Christian woman.
The 23 ministers took their oath in front of Sharaa during a televised ceremony at the presidential palace.
➡️ More details here
Lebanon
Hezbollah's Secretary-General, Naim Qassem, warned yesterday that if the Lebanese state fails to achieve political results in the face of Israeli violations, "other options" would be considered. This statement came the day after the first Israeli airstrikes on southern Beirut's suburbs in four months, in response to unclaimed rocket fire.
➡️ Key takeaways from the speech here
Earlier that same day, the commander of the Lebanese Army, General Rodolph Haykal, stated that the military had arrested several individuals suspected of being involved in the rocket fire.
➡️ Read the details of this announcement here
Gaza
A senior Hamas official stated yesterday that the Palestinian movement had approved a new cease-fire proposal for Gaza presented by the mediators, while Israel confirmed it had submitted a "counter-proposal" to them.
➡️ Everything you need to know here
Gaza
Rescue workers from Gaza’s Civil Defense reported that an Israeli airstrike on a house and a tent sheltering displaced people killed at least eight people, including five children, on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, according to AFP.
The strike, at the start of the holiday marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, took place while both Hamas and Israel indicated yesterday that they had received a new truce proposal from the mediators aimed at restoring the cease-fire in Gaza.
"Eight martyrs, including five children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house and a tent housing displaced people in Khan Younis [southern Gaza], before dawn," said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesperson for Civil Defense, to AFP.
Airstrike sirens went off in central Israel this morning after a "projectile" was fired from Yemen, according to Israeli media.
Agency journalists reported hearing several muffled explosions, similar to those caused by the interception of fire by Israel’s air defense system.
A little later, the Israeli army stated that it had intercepted a missile fired from Yemen outside its territory.
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the situation in the Middle East, particularly in Lebanon, where the Israeli army struck the southern suburbs of Beirut and shelled the South with strikes on Friday, following unclaimed rocket fire from northern Israel.
We will also be covering the situation in Gaza, the West Bank, as well as in Yemen and Syria.
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