Israeli strikes kill dozens in Beirut, Gaza as diplomats push for ceasefire – National

[Pelican Press 0]

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

******** strikes ***** dozens in Beirut, Gaza as diplomats push for ceasefire – National

******** airstrikes Saturday in central Beirut ******* at least 15 people, officials said, as the once-rare strikes in the heart of Lebanon’s capital continued without ******** warning, and as diplomats scrambled to broker a cease-*****.

Dozens were also ******* in ******** strikes in the Gaza Strip between Thursday and Friday, including near hospitals, according to local health officials.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 63 people were wounded in the Beirut strikes, the fourth in the central part of the capital in less than a week.

The escalation comes after U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein traveled to the region in pursuit of a cease-***** deal to end months of fighting between ******* and Hezbollah that has erupted into full-on war.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

2:17
*******-Hezbollah ceasefire discussed: reports

******** bombardment has ******* more than 3,500 people in Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the ******** side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been ******* by bombardment in northern ******* and the fighting.

Story continues below advertisement

Eight-story building turned to rubble

The 4 a.m. strikes destroyed an eight-story building in central Beirut. Hezbollah legislator Amin Shiri said no Hezbollah officials were inside. Some facades were stripped from nearby buildings, and residents watched among crumpled cars.

“The area is residential, with closely packed buildings and narrow streets, making the situation challenging,” said Walid Al-Hashash, a first responder with the Lebanese Civil Defense.

*******’s military did not comment on the casualties.

Also Saturday, a drone strike ******* two people and injured three in the southern port city of Tyre, according to the state-run National News Agency.

Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the ****** ************ faction in the Tyre area, said those ******* were ************ refugees from nearby al-Rashidieh camp who were out fishing.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

2:02
Hezbollah chief says indirect truce talks possible only if ******* stops attacks on Lebanon

Despite a warning last month by *******’s army to avoid Lebanon’s southern coast, “you can’t tell someone who needs to eat that you can’t fish,” Bikai said.

Story continues below advertisement

The Health Ministry said other airstrikes ******* eight people, including four children, in the eastern town of Shmustar; five in the southern village of Roumin and five in the northeastern village of Budai.

Sticking points in cease-***** talks

Two Western diplomatic officials on Saturday described disputed points between ******* and Lebanon in cease-***** negotiations.

Get daily National news

Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks.

The current proposal calls for a two-month cease-***** during which ******** forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the southern border south of the Litani River. Thousands more Lebanese army troops would patrol the border area with U.N. peacekeepers, and an international committee would monitor implementation.

The officials said ******* wanted more guarantees that Hezbollah’s weapons are removed from the border area. ******** officials have said they would not agree to a deal that did not explicitly grant them freedom to strike in Lebanon if they believe Hezbollah is violating it.

Story continues below advertisement

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

2:02
******* guilty of war ******* in Gaza: Human Rights Watch

Lebanese officials have said the inclusion of such a term would violate Lebanon’s sovereignty, and Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said this week the militant group would not agree to a deal that does not entail a “complete and comprehensive end to the aggression.”

Lebanon and ******* also dispute which countries would sit on the monitoring committee. The officials said ******* refused to allow France, which has been close with Lebanon since its colonial rule there ended. Lebanon refused to have Britain, a close ally of *******.

Deadly strikes in Gaza and people trapped in rubble

In northern Gaza, the Health Ministry said at least 80 people were ******* between Thursday and Friday, including near Kamal Adwan and Al-Ahli hospitals. It said dozens of people were trapped under the rubble.

Story continues below advertisement

*******’s army said it wasn’t aware of a strike near Kamal Adwan and didn’t respond about the other attacks.

On Saturday, at least six people, including three children and two women, were ******* in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to Associated Press reporters and staff at Nasser Hospital.

“Suddenly we woke up to dust, smoke and a *****,” said one grieving father, Ahmad Ghassan. “We found him ***** and his brother injured.” Another father wept as he carried his child’s body in a bloodstained sheet.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

1:35
*******-Gaza: U.S. vetoes UN Security Council resolution on ceasefire

The ************ ****** toll from the 13-month-long conflict surpassed 44,000 this week, according to the ******-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. It has said more than half the ***** are women and children. The ******** military says it has ******* over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

Story continues below advertisement

The latest conflict began when ******-led militants stormed into southern ******* on Oct. 7, 2023, ******** some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third believed to be *****.

The ******** offensive in Gaza has devastated wide areas, and around 90% of the population of 2.3 million people have been displaced, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands live in tent camps with little food, water or basic services.

At least two women were shot ***** Saturday while waiting in line for bread in central Deir al-Balah, relatives and witnesses told the AP. It was unclear who shot them and why.

Reactions continue to ICC warrants

Conditions in Gaza prompted this week’s decision by the International ********* Court to issue arrest warrants for ******** Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant based on “reasonable grounds” that they bear responsibility for a war ****** and ******* against humanity. The court also issued a warrant for top ****** official Mohammed Deif, who ******* claims it *******.

Story continues below advertisement

Netanyahu condemned the warrant. Global reactions have been mixed.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

1:51
Trudeau says Canada will ‘abide’ by international law, after ICC issues arrest warrant for Netanyahu

The U.K. reiterated its support for the court but stopped short of saying whether it would arrest Netanyahu if he visits. Russia doesn’t recognize the court’s jurisdiction and hasn’t commented. The U.S. also doesn’t recognize the court’s jurisdiction and has rejected its decision.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said this week that Canada would abide by the international court’s rules and regulations when asked if he would allow Netanyahu or Gallant to be arrested on ********* soil, prompting outrage from ******* groups and the ******** ambassador.

Nomi Bar-Yaacov, an associate fellow in the International Security Program at London’s Chatham House think tank, said that even if Netanyahu won’t be able to travel to many ********* countries because of risk of arrest, he’ll go to the ******* States.

Story continues below advertisement

“That will only strengthen his ties to Donald Trump,” she said.

—With additional file from Global News

More on World
More videos

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

#******** #strikes #***** #dozens #Beirut #Gaza #diplomats #push #ceasefire #National

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up