UNHCR: Israel's Border Airstrikes Hindering Refugees Fleeing Lebanon for Syria

Displaced Syrians from Lebanon arrive in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in northwestern Syria via the crossing Aoun al-Dadat north of Manbij with the Syrian Democratic Forces after a long displacement journey. Photo: Anas Alkharboutli/dpa
Displaced Syrians from Lebanon arrive in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in northwestern Syria via the crossing Aoun al-Dadat north of Manbij with the Syrian Democratic Forces after a long displacement journey. Photo: Anas Alkharboutli/dpa
TT

UNHCR: Israel's Border Airstrikes Hindering Refugees Fleeing Lebanon for Syria

Displaced Syrians from Lebanon arrive in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in northwestern Syria via the crossing Aoun al-Dadat north of Manbij with the Syrian Democratic Forces after a long displacement journey. Photo: Anas Alkharboutli/dpa
Displaced Syrians from Lebanon arrive in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in northwestern Syria via the crossing Aoun al-Dadat north of Manbij with the Syrian Democratic Forces after a long displacement journey. Photo: Anas Alkharboutli/dpa

Israeli air strikes overnight on the main border crossing to Syria had left Lebanon's main crossing point to its neighbor unable to function, hindering refugee attempts to flee a country where a fifth of the population is already internally displaced, the UN's refugee agency said.
Rula Amin, the UNHCR's Amman-based spokesperson, said she was unaware of any warning being given before the strike, which landed 500 meters from the main border crossing, Reuters reported.
Some 430,000 people have crossed from Lebanon to Syria since Israel's campaign started, she said.
"The attacks on the border crossings are a major concern," she said. "They are blocking the path to safety for people fleeing conflict."



Israeli Ground Troops in Lebanon Reach the Litani River

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the southern Lebanese town of Al-Khiam, as seen from northern Israel, 26 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the southern Lebanese town of Al-Khiam, as seen from northern Israel, 26 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
TT

Israeli Ground Troops in Lebanon Reach the Litani River

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the southern Lebanese town of Al-Khiam, as seen from northern Israel, 26 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the southern Lebanese town of Al-Khiam, as seen from northern Israel, 26 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)

The Israeli military says its ground troops have reached parts of Lebanon’s Litani River — a focal point of the emerging ceasefire.

In a statement Tuesday, the army said it had reached the Wadi Slouqi area in southern Lebanon and clashed with Hezbollah forces.

Under a proposed ceasefire, Hezbollah would be required to move its forces north of the Litani, which in some places is some 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Israeli border.

The military says the clashes with Hezbollah took place on the eastern end of the Litani, just a few kilometers (miles) from the border. It is one of the deepest places Israeli forces have reached in a nearly two-month ground operation.

The military says soldiers destroyed rocket launchers and missiles and engaged in “close-quarters combat” with Hezbollah forces.

The announcement came hours before Israel’s security Cabinet is expected to approve a ceasefire that would end nearly 14 months of fighting.