Lebanese Army to Launch Battle Against ISIS

Members of the Lebanese Army's airborne regiment perform a live drill, held as part of a weapons exhibition during the Security Middle East Show in Beirut, as a sandstorm engulfed Lebanon for a second day September 9, 2015. - Reuters
Members of the Lebanese Army's airborne regiment perform a live drill, held as part of a weapons exhibition during the Security Middle East Show in Beirut, as a sandstorm engulfed Lebanon for a second day September 9, 2015. - Reuters
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Lebanese Army to Launch Battle Against ISIS

Members of the Lebanese Army's airborne regiment perform a live drill, held as part of a weapons exhibition during the Security Middle East Show in Beirut, as a sandstorm engulfed Lebanon for a second day September 9, 2015. - Reuters
Members of the Lebanese Army's airborne regiment perform a live drill, held as part of a weapons exhibition during the Security Middle East Show in Beirut, as a sandstorm engulfed Lebanon for a second day September 9, 2015. - Reuters

The Lebanese Army continue its preparations for the anticipated battle with ISIS, in Ras Baalbek and al-Qaa where the army intensified bombardment and deployed forces and equipment.

It has been rumored that the land-battle will be launched within the upcoming hours – military sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Hezbollah handed out some sites to the army.

Sources also denied the commencement of the battle, “what occurred in the past hours is an advancement of the army towards hills outlooking the region where ISIS members are sheltering, but no clashes occurred.”

According to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA), “The shelling with heavy artillery has destroyed a number of tanks and fortifications, amid the reinforcement of positions in Arsal Mountains to prevent any infiltration of terrorists.”

Head of Arsal Municipality Basel al-Hujairi noted that the residents of Arsal did not yet receive access to their lands which were occupied by Jabhat al-Nusra, but he added that the Lebanese Army is in charge of the matter.

“Hezbollah has expressed willingness to hand out these lands to the Army and their owners but it seems that some procedures must be taken first,” Hujairi added.

“However the miserable economic condition makes the residents in a rush to restore their lands so that they can invest them and operate their factories,” he continued.

Until this moment, ISIS shows no intention to hold negotiations to depart from the region or to disclose the destiny of the nine Lebanese soldiers captives – since 2014. However, experts said that ISIS would likely negotiate after the military battle is launched.

Riad Kahwaji, INEGMA's Founder and Chief Executive Officer, stated that the army depends on “a specific strategy in dealing with ISIS through exerting pressure and exasperating it, which might push ISIS at the end to refuge to negotiations.”



28 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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28 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 28 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, including four children, hospital officials said Saturday.

The children and two women were among at least 13 people who were killed in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, after Israeli airstrikes pounded the area starting late Friday, officials in Al-Aqsa Martyr's Hospital said. Another four people were killed in strikes near a fuel station, and 15 others died in Israeli airstrikes in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, according to Nasser Hospital.

The Israeli military said in a statement that over the past 48 hours, troops struck approximately 250 targets in the Gaza Strip, including militants, booby-trapped structures, weapons storage facilities, anti-tank missile launch posts, sniper posts, tunnels and additional Hamas infrastructure sites. The military did not immediately respond to The Associated Press' request for comment on the civilian deaths.

The Hamas-led group killed some 1,200 people in their Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and abducted 251. They still hold 50 hostages, less than half of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s offensive has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza’s Hamas-run government, doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count. The UN and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.

US President Donald Trump has said that he is closing in on another ceasefire agreement that would see more hostages released and potentially wind down the war. But after two days of talks this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu there were no signs of a breakthrough.