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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
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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.

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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
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Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.