Schools Closed in Beirut after Deadly Israeli Strike

Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
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Schools Closed in Beirut after Deadly Israeli Strike

Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP

Schools in Beirut were closed on Monday after Israeli strikes on the Lebanese capital killed six people including Hezbollah's spokesman, the latest in a string of top militant targets slain in the war.

Israel escalated its bombardment of Hezbollah strongholds in late September, vowing to secure its northern border with Lebanon to allow Israelis displaced by cross-border fire to return home.

Sunday's strikes hit densely populated districts of central Beirut that had so far been spared the violence engulfing other areas of Lebanon.

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The strikes prompted the education ministry to shut schools and higher education institutions in the Beirut area for two days.

Children and young people around Lebanon have been heavily impacted by the war, which has seen schools around the country turned into shelters for the displaced.

Lebanese authorities say more than 3,480 people have been killed since October last year, with most casualties recorded since September.

Israel says 48 soldiers have been killed fighting Hezbollah, AFP reported.

Another strike hit a busy shopping district of Beirut, sparking a huge blaze that engulfed part of a building and several shops nearby.

Lebanon's National News Agency said the fire had largely been extinguished by Monday morning, noting it had caused diesel fuel tanks to explode.

"In a quarter of an hour our whole life's work was lost," said Shukri Fuad, who owned a shop destroyed in the strike.

Ayman Darwish worked at an electronics shop that was hit.

"Everyone knows us, everyone knows this area is a civilian area, no one is armed here," he said.

One of those killed in the strike, Darwish said, was the son of the owner of the store where he worked.

"The martyr Mahmud used to come after working hours, in the evenings and even on Sundays, to deal with client requests," he said.

The NNA reported new strikes early Monday on locations around south Lebanon, long a stronghold of Hezbollah.



Biden Says He Will Keep Pushing Gaza Ceasefire Efforts

 President Joe Biden speaks as other G20 leaders listen during the G20 Summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (Eric Lee/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
President Joe Biden speaks as other G20 leaders listen during the G20 Summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (Eric Lee/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
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Biden Says He Will Keep Pushing Gaza Ceasefire Efforts

 President Joe Biden speaks as other G20 leaders listen during the G20 Summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (Eric Lee/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
President Joe Biden speaks as other G20 leaders listen during the G20 Summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (Eric Lee/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

President Joe Biden told fellow global leaders at a Group of 20 summit Monday that his soon-to-end administration would keep pushing to bring an equitable end to Israel’s devastating war against Hamas in Gaza.

Seated between leaders of France and India at a long oval table at the summit site in Rio de Janeiro, Biden cited US efforts on hunger and poverty in his soon-to-end four years in office, saying he had put $160 billion into global development.

With fewer than three months left in his term, Biden also said his administration would keep pressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government on its conduct of the war and the need to end it.

“Israel has a right to defend itself after the worse massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. But how it defends itself ... matters a great deal.”

“We’re going to keep pushing to accelerate a ceasefire deal that ensures Israel’s security and brings hostages home and ends the suffering of the Palestinian people and children,” he said.

Biden also said Hamas was still refusing a deal, adding, “I am asking everyone to increase the pressure on Hamas.”