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Israel Again Strikes Deep Into Lebanese Territory

A picture taken from Lebanese town of Marjeyoun shows smoke billowing in the contested border area of Shebaa Farms on October 14, 2023, during a cross-border exchange between Lebanon and Israel. (AFP)
A picture taken from Lebanese town of Marjeyoun shows smoke billowing in the contested border area of Shebaa Farms on October 14, 2023, during a cross-border exchange between Lebanon and Israel. (AFP)
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Israel Again Strikes Deep Into Lebanese Territory

A picture taken from Lebanese town of Marjeyoun shows smoke billowing in the contested border area of Shebaa Farms on October 14, 2023, during a cross-border exchange between Lebanon and Israel. (AFP)
A picture taken from Lebanese town of Marjeyoun shows smoke billowing in the contested border area of Shebaa Farms on October 14, 2023, during a cross-border exchange between Lebanon and Israel. (AFP)

Israel on Saturday struck an aluminium factory deep in Lebanese territory, state media in Lebanon said, a week after its furthest strike since border skirmishes began last month.

"An enemy (Israeli) drone fired two missiles at an aluminium factory on the road between Toul and Kfour, setting it on fire," Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) said, without specifying whether there were casualties.

But Kfour mayor Khodr Saad told AFP two wounded civilians were transported to a hospital in the village.

The factory is about 15 kilometres (nine miles) from the Israeli frontier.

Weeks of deadly skirmishes between Israel and armed factions in Lebanon, mainly Hezbollah, have largely been limited to border areas since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7.

NNA said it was the first strike in the Nabatiyeh region of Lebanon's south since the 2006 war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement.

It also reported Israeli artillery strikes and air raids against several areas in Lebanon's south.

The factory bombardment comes after Israel on November 11 struck a pickup truck on a farm in the Zahrani area on Lebanon's coast, about 45 kilometres (28 miles) from the Israeli border, NNA said at the time, without reporting casualties.

Hezbollah on Saturday claimed to have shot down an Israeli Hermes 450 drone "using a surface-to-air missile", in addition to launching five other attacks on Israel's northern border.

While war continues in Gaza, "all resistance forces... will continue to put pressure on Israel," senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine said during a speech.

"There is no question today of talking about a ceasefire on one front and not the other," he added.

The frontier between the two countries has seen daily exchanges of fire since October 7 when unprecedented attacks on Israel by Gaza-based Palestinian militant group Hamas, a Hezbollah ally, sparked war.

At least 90 people have been killed on the Lebanese side in cross-border skirmishes since last month, according to an AFP tally, most of them Hezbollah combatants but including at least 10 civilians.

Six soldiers and three civilians have been killed on the Israeli side, according to authorities there.

 

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Iraqi Kurdistan: Assailant of Assyrian Celebration Attack Affiliated with ISIS

 Akitu holiday celebrators carrying a flag for the Assyrians in Iraq (AP). 
 Akitu holiday celebrators carrying a flag for the Assyrians in Iraq (AP). 
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Iraqi Kurdistan: Assailant of Assyrian Celebration Attack Affiliated with ISIS

 Akitu holiday celebrators carrying a flag for the Assyrians in Iraq (AP). 
 Akitu holiday celebrators carrying a flag for the Assyrians in Iraq (AP). 

Authorities in Duhok, in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, announced on Wednesday that the attack carried out by a Syrian national during a Christian celebration in the city was an “act of terrorism.”

On Tuesday, the attacker infiltrated a gathering of Syriac Christians celebrating the Akitu festival in central Duhok. He then pulled out an axe and attacked a young man, a 70-year-old woman, and a security officer.

Videos circulating on local media platforms showed a group of people apprehending the attacker, who was seen making hand gestures and shouting “Islamic State.” Shamon Shlimon, the deputy governor of Duhok, stated that initial investigations revealed the attacker was a Syrian national and that given the slogans he shouted, “it is clear that the attack was an act of terrorism.”

Later, security sources confirmed that the assailant admitted to police that he belonged to a terrorist organization.

The Kurdistan Regional Security Council later announced that the attacker was affiliated with an ISIS-linked group. In a press statement, the council said: “While the people of Duhok were celebrating Akitu, an individual holding extremist ISIS ideologies attacked citizens in the market with a sharp weapon.”

The Kurdistan Regional Presidency condemned the “criminal attack,” affirming that it would not tolerate any actions that undermine the culture of coexistence, acceptance, and tolerance.

In a statement on Wednesday, the presidency said it was “closely following” the investigation into the “criminal attack” in Duhok, assuring that the perpetrator will face legal consequences.

This is the first attack of its kind in Duhok. Chaldeans and Syriacs celebrate Babylonian-Assyrian New Year (Akitu) every April 1. During the recent attack, more than 8,000 people were present, half of whom were from outside the Kurdistan region, according to local reports.

The Akitu festival features celebrations, cultural and artistic events, and recreational activities, including traditional dances.