Israel Bombs Ten Hezbollah Sites in South Lebanon

People inspect the damage at the site of an airstrike in Habbariyah, southern Lebanon, 27 March 2024.  EPA/STR
People inspect the damage at the site of an airstrike in Habbariyah, southern Lebanon, 27 March 2024. EPA/STR
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Israel Bombs Ten Hezbollah Sites in South Lebanon

People inspect the damage at the site of an airstrike in Habbariyah, southern Lebanon, 27 March 2024.  EPA/STR
People inspect the damage at the site of an airstrike in Habbariyah, southern Lebanon, 27 March 2024. EPA/STR

The Israeli army said on Monday that its warplanes have bombed nearly ten Hezbollah targets in South Lebanon, according to the Arab Press Agency.
In a statement, the Israeli army said the targets included a weapons storage facility, missile launch sites, and infrastructure belonging to the group in the Rashaya al-Fukhar area in southern Lebanon.
On Sunday, the Israeli military said it killed a Hezbollah commander in an airstrike on a vehicle in Lebanon, identifying him as Ismail Al-Zin, a commander in the anti-tank missile unit of Hezbollah's Radwan Forces.
Hezbollah began launching rockets from hilltops and villages in southern Lebanon at Israel on Oct. 8 in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, which carried out a cross-border attack into Israel the previous day that triggered a fierce Israeli land, air and sea offensive on the Gaza Strip.
Israel's shelling of Lebanon has killed nearly 270 Hezbollah fighters, but has also killed around 50 civilians - including children, medics and journalists - and hit both UNIFIL and the Lebanese army.
The US and other countries have sought to secure a diplomatic resolution to the exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah said it will not halt fire before a ceasefire is implemented in Gaza.



Iraqi PM Urges Trump to 'Work Towards Ending' Mideast Wars

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. (Reuters)
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. (Reuters)
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Iraqi PM Urges Trump to 'Work Towards Ending' Mideast Wars

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. (Reuters)
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. (Reuters)

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani expressed hopes during a phone call with US President-elect Donald Trump that he would keep his "promises to work towards ending wars" in the Middle East.

In the phone call, the Iraqi premier pointed to Trump's "campaign statements and promises to work towards ending wars in the region", a statement from Sudani's office said late Friday.

"The two sides agreed to coordinate efforts in achieving this goal," it added, AFP reported.

About 2,500 American troops are deployed in Iraq as part of a US-led coalition that was formed to help battle ISIS.

Bases hosting the American troops have been the target of dozens of rocket and drone attacks launched by Iran-backed groups in Iraq, which have also claimed attacks against Israel.

Baghdad has for years called on Washington to provide a clear timeline for the withdrawal of their remaining coalition troops.

The US and Iraq announced in late September that the international coalition would end its decade-long military mission in federal Iraq within a year, and by September 2026 in the autonomous Kurdistan region.

But the joint statement and US officials did not say whether any American troops would remain in Iraq.

Under Trump's first term in office, relations deteriorated between the two countries after a US drone strike in January 2020 killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani -- the chief of the Quds Force and the architect of the Islamic republic's military operations abroad.

Also killed in that strike was Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of Iraq's former paramilitary Hashed al-Shaabi that have been integrated into the armed forces.

As part of their investigations into Muhandis's assassination, the Iraqi judiciary issued a warrant for Trump's arrest in January 2021.