Israeli Airstrike kills 3, Including Child, in Southern Lebanon

Israeli artillery shells an area of Al-Khiam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 11 September 2024. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Israeli artillery shells an area of Al-Khiam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 11 September 2024. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
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Israeli Airstrike kills 3, Including Child, in Southern Lebanon

Israeli artillery shells an area of Al-Khiam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 11 September 2024. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Israeli artillery shells an area of Al-Khiam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 11 September 2024. EPA/ATEF SAFADI

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said that an Israeli airstrike on southern Lebanon killed three people, including a child.
The ministry said the Thursday night airstrike on the southern village of Kfarjoz also wounded three people.

A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that one of the dead was “a fighter in Hezbollah” and the two others were “civilians."

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said the strike “targeted two motorcycles on the Nabatieh-Kfarjoz road," and that a passing car was also hit.

The Lebanon-Israel border has been witnessing daily exchanges for nearly a year as Hezbollah says it’s backing up its ally Hamas in Gaza.
More than 500 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon since Oct. 8, most of them fighters with Hezbollah and other armed groups but also more than 100 civilians.

In northern Israel, 23 soldiers and 26 civilians have been killed by strikes from Lebanon.

On Friday, the Israeli military said “approximately 20 projectiles were identified crossing from Lebanon into Israeli territory” around Safed, where the Israeli army Northern Command is based.

“Most were successfully intercepted, the rest fell in open areas,” the army said, adding that no injuries were reported but teams were working to “extinguish the fire that erupted due to a fall in the area."



Syria's New Rulers Name Foreign Minister

Asaad Hassan al-Shibani. (SANA)
Asaad Hassan al-Shibani. (SANA)
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Syria's New Rulers Name Foreign Minister

Asaad Hassan al-Shibani. (SANA)
Asaad Hassan al-Shibani. (SANA)

Syria's new rulers have appointed a foreign minister, the official Syrian news agency (SANA) said on Saturday, as they seek to build international relations two weeks after Bashar al-Assad was ousted.

The ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step “comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”

The opposition Syria TV said Shibani, formerly known as Zeid al-Attar, was in charge of foreign affairs when the Al-Nusra Front transformed into the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.

Syrian media said that until 2024, he has been residing in Türkiye. Along with HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, he helped form the al-Nusra Front.

Shibani assumed several pseudonyms, including Nassim, Abu Aisha, Abu Ammar al-Shami and Hussam al-Shafei.

Born in 1987, he hails from the Hasakeh countryside. He was studying translation before his family moved to Damascus where he earned a degree in English Literature from Damascus University. He earned a master's degree in political science and foreign relations in Türkiye in 2022.

Syria's de facto ruler Sharaa has actively engaged with foreign delegations since assuming power, including hosting the UN's Syria envoy and senior US diplomats.

Sharaa has signaled a willingness to engage diplomatically with international envoys, saying his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development. He has said he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.

The United States, other Western powers and many Syrians were glad to see groups led by the HTS topple Assad.