Israel Warns People to Evacuate from More Areas in East, South Lebanon

Workers remove the rubble from the site of an Israeli airstrike the previous day that targeted the eastern Lebanese village of Bednayel in the Bekaa valley, on October 31, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Sam SKAINEH / AFP)
Workers remove the rubble from the site of an Israeli airstrike the previous day that targeted the eastern Lebanese village of Bednayel in the Bekaa valley, on October 31, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Sam SKAINEH / AFP)
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Israel Warns People to Evacuate from More Areas in East, South Lebanon

Workers remove the rubble from the site of an Israeli airstrike the previous day that targeted the eastern Lebanese village of Bednayel in the Bekaa valley, on October 31, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Sam SKAINEH / AFP)
Workers remove the rubble from the site of an Israeli airstrike the previous day that targeted the eastern Lebanese village of Bednayel in the Bekaa valley, on October 31, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Sam SKAINEH / AFP)

The Israeli military warned people to evacuate from more areas of the eastern city of Baalbek and south Lebanon, including a built-up Palestinian refugee camp.

Israeli airstrikes, meanwhile, killed at least ten people in different parts of the country on Thursday.

The Rashidiyeh refugee camp near the port city of Tyre is one of several dating back to the 1948 Mideast war, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven out of what is now Israel.

Israel invaded Lebanon at the start of October, after nearly a year of trading fire with Hezbollah. The group began firing rockets, missiles and drones on northern Israel after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack triggered the war in Gaza. Iran backs both groups.

Israel has warned people to evacuate from large areas of the country, including major cities in the south and east. Over a million people have already fled their homes.

Israeli strikes killed seven people in eastern Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News agency. Another strike killed a man on a motorcycle on the coastal highway between Tyre and Sidon.

The news agency also reported a strike on a car on a main highway running through the mountains outside the capital, Beirut. It said the strike in Araya closed the highway, diverting traffic through nearby villages.

Two people were killed in the attack, media reports said.



Lebanon’s Berri: Resolution 1701 Stands Unchanged

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri meets with US envoy Amos Hochstein during his recent visit to Beirut (AFP)
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri meets with US envoy Amos Hochstein during his recent visit to Beirut (AFP)
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Lebanon’s Berri: Resolution 1701 Stands Unchanged

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri meets with US envoy Amos Hochstein during his recent visit to Beirut (AFP)
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri meets with US envoy Amos Hochstein during his recent visit to Beirut (AFP)

Lebanon is monitoring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s response to US President Joe Biden’s push for a ceasefire in southern Lebanon.

Biden has sent advisors Amos Hochstein and Brett McGurk to Tel Aviv to discuss the matter with Netanyahu, marking what Lebanese officials see as the last chance for progress before the US presidential election on Nov. 5.

Lebanese leaders, including Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, are cautious about predicting results.

Mikati did not comment after his recent meetings with US advisors.

However, Berri highlighted Lebanon’s prior agreement with Hochstein to a ceasefire, deploying the Lebanese army in the south, and enforcing UN Resolution 1701.

Berri reaffirmed that Lebanon won’t alter these terms, saying, “What’s agreed is agreed; Resolution 1701 stands unchanged.”

The speaker clarified that Lebanon has fulfilled its commitments and is now waiting for Netanyahu’s response, noting that Lebanon is ready to implement the ceasefire if Hochstein can secure Netanyahu’s agreement.

“The ball is now in Netanyahu’s court,” Berri said, pointing out that Netanyahu has previously agreed to and then withdrawn from ceasefire deals.

According to sources, Hezbollah is fully behind Berri’s mandate for a ceasefire.

Hezbollah’s newly appointed Secretary-General, Sheikh Naim Qassem, recently confirmed the party’s support.

Qassem is closely following developments with the party’s military leadership, while Hezbollah’s MPs continue discussions with other blocs to clarify their position.

Lebanese sources stressed that reaching a ceasefire is critical and must happen as soon as possible, asserting that Netanyahu should not leverage the situation in Gaza as a pretext to avoid a southern ceasefire.

As Biden’s envoys prepare to meet with Netanyahu, Lebanese officials remain focused on whether this effort will result in an agreement.

The ongoing clashes near the southern Lebanese town of Khiam, where Hezbollah is actively resisting Israeli advances, have intensified the situation, making the outcome of these discussions crucial.