Israel Retaliates against Hezbollah after Rockets Fired from Lebanon

Smoke billows across the horizon along the hills in the Naqura area of southern Lebanon following Israeli bombardment from a position along the border in northern Israel on December 24, 2023. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Smoke billows across the horizon along the hills in the Naqura area of southern Lebanon following Israeli bombardment from a position along the border in northern Israel on December 24, 2023. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
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Israel Retaliates against Hezbollah after Rockets Fired from Lebanon

Smoke billows across the horizon along the hills in the Naqura area of southern Lebanon following Israeli bombardment from a position along the border in northern Israel on December 24, 2023. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Smoke billows across the horizon along the hills in the Naqura area of southern Lebanon following Israeli bombardment from a position along the border in northern Israel on December 24, 2023. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)

The Israeli army said on Sunday that its troops retaliated to a barrage of rocket strikes coming from Lebanon and hitting areas in the north of Israel.
In a statement on Telegram, the Israeli army said its warplanes raided a number of Hezbollah military targets in Lebanon, including infrastructure and military facilities, and several rocket launch pads, the Arab World News Agency reported.
On Saturday, Israel said it targeted a Hezbollah military position and several other areas in South Lebanon.
The statement added that several missiles were launched from the Lebanese side towards areas in North Israel and that its troops retaliated with heavy bombardment at the source of fire.
One of the Israeli soldiers was moderately injured as a result of the bombing that targeted the town of Al-Manara in northern Israel, it added.
Cross-border shelling escalated between the Israeli army on one hand and Hezbollah and armed Palestinian factions in Lebanon on the other following the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip on October 7.



US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
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US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)

Recent statements by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his willingness to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to normalize relations between the two countries have sparked mixed reactions.
While the Syrian opposition sees the possibility of such a meeting despite the challenges, Damascus views the statements as a political maneuver by the Turks. Meanwhile, the United States has tied the normalization process to achieving a political solution in Syria based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254, issued in 2015.
Turkish media reported on Thursday that a US administration official, who was not named, confirmed that Washington is against normalizing relations with the Syrian regime under Assad. He emphasized that Washington cannot accept normalizing ties with Damascus without progress toward a political solution that ends the conflicts in Syria.
Meanwhile, the head of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, Hadi al-Bahra, stated that a meeting between Assad and Erdogan is possible despite the obstacles. In a statement to Reuters on Thursday, Bahra said the meeting is feasible, even though Ankara is fully aware that the Assad regime cannot currently meet its demands and understands the regime’s limitations.
Bahra pointed out that the UN-led political process remains frozen and that he had briefed US and Western officials on the latest developments in the Syrian file. On Saturday, Bahra participated in a consultative meeting in Ankara with the Syrian Negotiation Commission, along with a high-level delegation from the US State Department, during which they exchanged views on the political solution and the need to establish binding mechanisms for implementing international resolutions related to the Syrian issue.
On the other side, Assad’s special advisor, Bouthaina Shaaban, dismissed Erdogan’s announcement that Ankara is awaiting a response from Damascus regarding his meeting with Assad for normalization as another political maneuver with ulterior motives.
Shaaban, speaking during a lecture at the Omani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was reported by Turkish media on Thursday, stated that any rapprochement between the two countries is contingent on its withdrawal of forces from Syrian territory.