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South Korea Urges Its Citizens to Leave Lebanon and Israel

Israeli artillery shells the area of Wazzani in south Lebanon, as seen from the upper Galilee, northern Israel, 05 August 2024. (EPA)
Israeli artillery shells the area of Wazzani in south Lebanon, as seen from the upper Galilee, northern Israel, 05 August 2024. (EPA)
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South Korea Urges Its Citizens to Leave Lebanon and Israel

Israeli artillery shells the area of Wazzani in south Lebanon, as seen from the upper Galilee, northern Israel, 05 August 2024. (EPA)
Israeli artillery shells the area of Wazzani in south Lebanon, as seen from the upper Galilee, northern Israel, 05 August 2024. (EPA)

South Korea's foreign ministry on Tuesday "strongly advised" its nationals in Lebanon and Israel to leave as soon as possible because of escalating tensions in the Middle East.

The travel advisory was issued after a commander of the Iran-aligned Lebanese group Hezbollah and the head of the political wing of Hamas, the group that runs the Gaza Strip, were killed, Lee Jae-woong, a ministry spokesperson said.

The assassinations came after a deadly rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights late last month.

"South Korea's government...hopes that diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions such as negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release will not stop," Lee told a briefing.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in the Iranian capital Tehran last week, an attack that drew threats of revenge on Israel and fueled further concern that the conflict in Gaza was turning into a wider Middle East war.

Washington has been urging other countries through diplomatic channels to tell Iran that escalation in the Middle East is not in their interest, a State Department spokesperson said on Monday.

More than 500 South Korean nationals are currently residing in Israel and around 120 in Lebanon as of Tuesday, according to the ministry.

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Arab World

Iraq Condemns 'Reckless' Attacks on Bases

Supporters and members of Iraq's PMF wave flags as they march in Baghdad to condemn a US air strike in the south of the capital that killed four members of the Hashed, on July 31, 2024. (AFP)
Supporters and members of Iraq's PMF wave flags as they march in Baghdad to condemn a US air strike in the south of the capital that killed four members of the Hashed, on July 31, 2024. (AFP)
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Iraq Condemns 'Reckless' Attacks on Bases

Supporters and members of Iraq's PMF wave flags as they march in Baghdad to condemn a US air strike in the south of the capital that killed four members of the Hashed, on July 31, 2024. (AFP)
Supporters and members of Iraq's PMF wave flags as they march in Baghdad to condemn a US air strike in the south of the capital that killed four members of the Hashed, on July 31, 2024. (AFP)

Iraq's military condemned on Tuesday "reckless" actions against bases on its soil and said it had captured a truck with a rocket launcher a day after at least five US personnel were wounded in an attack amid an escalation of Middle East conflict.

The region is on edge over the Gaza war and possible reprisals by Iran and its allies after the killing of senior members of militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah.

"We reject all reckless actions and practices targeting Iraqi bases, diplomatic missions, and the whereabouts of the international coalition's advisers, and everything that would raise tension in the region," the Iraqi military statement said.

The military did not confirm US personnel were injured, as US officials told Reuters, but did say two rockets were fired on Monday at Ain al-Asad air base in western Iraq from the nearby town of Haditha.

A small truck was seized with a rocket launcher fixed on the back. Eight unfired rockets were dismantled, the statement said.

"The formations in our security forces, through intelligence and security work, have obtained important information about the perpetrators of this attack against Ain al-Asad, and they are currently being pursued to bring them to justice," the statement added, without giving more details.

A rare ally of both the US and Iran, Iraq hosts 2,500 US troops and has Iran-backed militias linked to its security forces. It has witnessed escalating tit-for-tat attacks since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in October.