Civilians Injured in South Lebanon… 3 Hezbollah Members Killed

The funeral of a Hezbollah member killed in confrontations in the south (EPA)
The funeral of a Hezbollah member killed in confrontations in the south (EPA)
TT

Civilians Injured in South Lebanon… 3 Hezbollah Members Killed

The funeral of a Hezbollah member killed in confrontations in the south (EPA)
The funeral of a Hezbollah member killed in confrontations in the south (EPA)

Israel and Hezbollah continued to trade fire on Thursday while the Lebanese party said it carried out a number of attacks targeting military sites and several gatherings of Israeli soldiers.
Hezbollah mourned three of its members who were killed "while carrying out their jihadist duty," the party said in a statement.
However, it did not state that they were killed "on the road to Jerusalem," a phrase listed in their previous statements symbolizing their solidarity and support for Hamas in its conflict with Israel in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said while visiting troops near the border with Lebanon, “If Hezbollah chooses to start an all-out war then it will by its own hand turn Beirut and southern Lebanon, not far from here, into Gaza and Khan Younis.”
Several students were injured after Israeli shelling on Thursday struck an educational institution in the southern Lebanese town of Qunin.
As a result of the Israeli aggression against southern Lebanon between October 8 and December 5, the Lebanon Disaster Risk Management Unit said it registered 20,000 displaced people from villages in Tyre district, south Lebanon, Lebanon state-run NNA news said.
Thousands were displaced to other areas and were not registered within the Disaster Risk Management Unit, NNA added.
The unit spoke about a lack of resources to provide services, saying nearly 40 villages on the border with Israel are still not safe for civilians to return.
Later in separate statements, Hezbollah said its fighters targeted the Bayad Blida and Al-Jerdah areas, in addition to several gatherings of Israeli soldiers near the Mitat barracks and the Jal Al-Allam site.
Hezbollah said that among the 11 attacks carried out on Thursday, the party targeted Al-Marj Site and Ramim Forest in the occupied Lebanese Hounin village, in addition to an Israeli barracks in Matat, a village abutting the Lebanese border.
Villages adjacent to the Blue Line in the western and central sectors experienced a cautious calm at night on Wednesday, disturbed by flare bombs, reconnaissance flights, and a shell that landed in the sea off the Bab Al-Tem area in the locality of Qassimiya.
In Marjayoun, NNA said one person was wounded by Israeli shelling that targeted the Tallet Hamames in Serda.
The man was transferred to the Marjayoun Governmental Hospital. NNA’s correspondent also reported that the Marjayoun plain was subject to Israeli artillery shelling on Thursday.
Meanwhile, an Israeli civilian was killed after Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile from the Lebanese border Thursday.
In response, the Israeli Army said it struck the source of the fire with attack helicopters, tanks, and artillery.



US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
TT

US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)

The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

"Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," Biden said in the memo.

"While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States."

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's military assault in Gaza.

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.