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France Relays Israeli Threats to Hezbollah in Lebanon 

An Israeli army soldier stands atop the turret of a Merkava battle tank as a column of tanks is amassed in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon on October 11, 2023. (AFP)
An Israeli army soldier stands atop the turret of a Merkava battle tank as a column of tanks is amassed in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon on October 11, 2023. (AFP)
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France Relays Israeli Threats to Hezbollah in Lebanon 

An Israeli army soldier stands atop the turret of a Merkava battle tank as a column of tanks is amassed in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon on October 11, 2023. (AFP)
An Israeli army soldier stands atop the turret of a Merkava battle tank as a column of tanks is amassed in the upper Galilee in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon on October 11, 2023. (AFP)

Israel has told the Lebanese Hezbollah party that it “is not interested in the war, but ready to wage it if it is imposed on it,” political sources told Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

It also made unprecedented threats, explaining that the war will not be waged according to “Hezbollah’s agenda, and will witness several strategic shocks.”

Israel informed the party, through France, that if the party joined the ongoing war with Hamas in Gaza, it would “resort to American power to suppress Hezbollah,” as well as confront and overthrow the Syrian regime, including President Bashar al-Assad’s personal security.

Military sources told the newspaper that the decision announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to bring the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford closer to the region was part of this threat.

The huge modern battleship carries 38 F-35, F-15, and F-16 fighter planes, and has a stockpile of 1,000 tons of weapons. It is accompanied by four small warships, a ship carrying missiles, and four nuclear war submarines, and is ready for combat.

Military sources who spoke to the newspaper said Israel held talks with the administration of US President Joe Biden and requested Congress’ approval to allow US forces to participate in a possible campaign against Hezbollah.

According to media leaks, a number of extremist ministers in the Israeli government are calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to wait for Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah to make a move. Rather he must exploit the war to launch a preemptive strike on the party. Netanyahu has been cautious and thrown the ball in the Israeli army’s court.

Army officials believe it was not wise for Israel to open the northern front, but they have stressed that if Hezbollah provocations persist, then “we will respond to them appropriately.”

Israeli military intelligence has been warning for several months against possible war with Hezbollah, pointing to several indications of unusual movements by its members, and saying Nasrallah has adopted a hardline.

On Saturday, an Israeli minister warned that the Hamas attack was just a ruse by Iran and would be followed by a surprise assault by Hezbollah.

“Iran is behind everything that is happening in our region... It pushed [Hamas] into war, and... will push [Hezbollah] to launch a second war,” the minister was quoted as saying.

The Israeli army announced on Oct. 5 that it was preparing “to conduct the largest massive training exercises to train on launching a broad, multi-front war” next November.

It added that these exercises will focus on the air force, with the unusual participation of the German, American, Italian, Greek and French air forces. Britain canceled its participation at the last minute and decided to send observers.

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Arab World

Syria Says Killed Leader of Armed Cell in Tartus

Members of Syria's Internal Security Forces. (SANA)
Members of Syria's Internal Security Forces. (SANA)
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Syria Says Killed Leader of Armed Cell in Tartus

Members of Syria's Internal Security Forces. (SANA)
Members of Syria's Internal Security Forces. (SANA)

Syrian authorities said on Tuesday that they had killed the leader of an armed cell linked to the former government and wounded another member during an operation in the countryside of Tartus.

In a statement, the Internal Security Forces said they had carried out a "carefully planned ambush" after monitoring the four-member group, which was allegedly planning to carry out "terrorist attacks and armed robberies".

The forces said the ensuing clash resulted in the "neutralization of the cell's leader" and the wounding of another member.

The forces confirmed that specialized units are continuing intensive sweep and pursuit operations across the surrounding rural areas to locate and apprehend the remaining fleeing members of the cell.

State security authorities reiterated their commitment to maintaining public order, eliminating remnants of illegal armed groups, and safeguarding civilian lives and property across all Syrian provinces.

Arab World

Airstrikes, Artillery Fire Wear Down Houthis as Yemeni Army Seizes Strategic Positions

Yemeni army fighters on the Jabal Han front near the city of Taiz. (AFP)
Yemeni army fighters on the Jabal Han front near the city of Taiz. (AFP)
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Airstrikes, Artillery Fire Wear Down Houthis as Yemeni Army Seizes Strategic Positions

Yemeni army fighters on the Jabal Han front near the city of Taiz. (AFP)
Yemeni army fighters on the Jabal Han front near the city of Taiz. (AFP)

Yemeni government forces pressed ahead with Operation Dawn of Yemen on Tuesday, stepping up airstrikes, drone attacks and artillery fire against Houthi positions and reinforcements across several fronts, as troops seized more ground in Al-Jawf and fighting continued in Taiz, Dhale and Marib.

Government forces struck Houthi military vehicles and fighter concentrations on several fronts in Al-Jawf.

Combat units from the Emergency Forces and Nation's Shield forces also captured new strategic positions and commanding heights in the province, military spokesman Majed al-Nuzaili said.

The gains were part of an operation aimed at expanding government control in Al-Jawf, he added.

Houthi attacks repelled in Taiz, Dhale

Government forces in Dhale repelled a Houthi assault on their positions in the Hajar sector in the province's northwest, clashing with attackers below Jabal al-Hasha.

A military source said government troops beat back the assault, inflicting casualties and equipment losses and forcing the Houthi militants to retreat.

In Marib, artillery units shelled Houthi positions and vehicles on the northern front. Emergency Forces also struck Houthi fighters and gatherings, killing 16 and wounding others, according to military sources.

In the besieged city of Taiz, government troops and Popular Resistance fighters thwarted Houthi attacks on the Al-Aqroud and Al-Shaqab fronts southeast of the city on Monday.

A military source said Houthi fighters attempted to advance on army positions in Kahlan, but were repelled and suffered losses.

The Houthis also resumed shelling residential neighborhoods in east and north of Taiz, wounding a civilian and damaging homes and residential buildings.

Government forces retake strategic positions

Yemen's military said its latest operations included 17 airstrikes, 123 drone attacks, 60 rocket launcher strikes and 782 artillery attacks against Houthi positions and military assets.

Warplanes carried out 17 strikes against Houthi positions and military capabilities, while drones conducted 123 attacks across Al-Jawf, Marib, Al-Mudaribah and the southwestern front.

Rocket launcher units carried out 60 strikes, while field artillery launched 782 attacks targeting Houthi fortifications, artillery emplacements, sniper positions, troop concentrations and reinforcements.

Spokesman Al-Nuzaili said the strikes inflicted heavy casualties and equipment losses on the Houthis, forcing dozens of fighters to flee their positions in Al-Jawf, Marib and Taiz.

Arab World

G7 Agrees on Need to Avoid ‘Security Void’ in Lebanon After UN Force Mandate Ends

Under US pressure, the UN Security Council voted last year to end UNIFIL's mandate on December 31, 2026. (AFP)
Under US pressure, the UN Security Council voted last year to end UNIFIL's mandate on December 31, 2026. (AFP)
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G7 Agrees on Need to Avoid ‘Security Void’ in Lebanon After UN Force Mandate Ends

Under US pressure, the UN Security Council voted last year to end UNIFIL's mandate on December 31, 2026. (AFP)
Under US pressure, the UN Security Council voted last year to end UNIFIL's mandate on December 31, 2026. (AFP)

G7 foreign ministers agreed on "the need to avoid a security void" in Lebanon after UN peacekeepers pull out, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Tuesday after a meeting of the group in Paris.

They also backed "the need to move quickly toward a new security architecture" after the mandate of United Nations peacekeeping forces in Israel's neighbor expires at the end of the year, he said.

But Barrot acknowledged there had been no breakthrough on what should replace the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which has been in place since 1978 and now counts some 7,500 personnel from nearly 50 countries.

Under US pressure, the UN Security Council voted last year to end UNIFIL's mandate on December 31, 2026.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told AFP in October that the bloc favored a UN peacekeeping mandate in south Lebanon.

Lebanese group Hezbollah drew the country into the broader Middle East war by attacking Israel, which responded with massive airstrikes and a ground invasion that Lebanon says have killed more than 4,300 people.

"I am hopeful that we will reach a consensus," said Barrot. "The objective is widely shared: the withdrawal of Israel (from southern Lebanon), the disarmament of Hezbollah (which is pro-Iranian), and the restoration of a strong state that holds a monopoly on the use of arms -- a state capable of ensuring the security and prosperity of all the populations and all the communities in Lebanon."

Israel now maintains troops in a self-declared occupied "security zone" running around 10 kilometers (six miles) inside Lebanon along the border.

"We underscored the need for a robust, credible, and long-lasting security architecture in Lebanon in support of the Lebanese Armed Forces," the ministers said in their final communique.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that he had discussed the issue with President Emmanuel Macron and suggested that what replaces UNIFIL "doesn't have to be a military mission, it could be a civilian mission."

"We need a verification system trusted by everyone and trusted by both sides that both sides are complying with their obligations under the agreements that are in place," Rubio said.

A transitional mechanism utilizing UNIFIL forces is among the options on the table, a European diplomat said, asking not to be named.

But this could require a UN Security Council resolution and thus run into an American veto, the diplomat warned.

The Europeans are also pushing a proposal for an international military coalition tasked with supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces in their mission to disarm Hezbollah.

However, the formation of such a coalition faces hesitation from Italy, which "remains strongly committed to its presence in Lebanon but appears reluctant to join an ad hoc coalition", partly due to cost concerns, as such missions are not funded by the UN, diplomats said.