Lebanon: Over 700 killed in Lebanon as Israel rejects ceasefire

Israel strikes kill three in Gaza's Deir al-Balah, Jabalia

Three Palestinians have been killed and several others injured on Friday morning by ongoing Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip.

Medical sources confirmed that a young man was killed and others sustained injuries from Israeli bombardments targeting displaced people's tents at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, the Palestinian Wafa agency reported.

Additionally, two others were killed and others wounded when Israeli forces struck a home in the Jarn area of the town of Jabalia, northern Gaza.

Hezbollah claims four attacks on Israel on Friday

Hezbollah has carried out at least four attacks on Friday morning on Israel, including Kiryat Atta with Fadi-1 missiles, the bombing of the Israeli settlement of Ilaniya, west of the city of Tiberias, also with Fadi-1 missiles and two barrage rockets on Tiberias.

Over 30,000 crossed into Syria from Lebanon in past days: UN

More than 30,000 people, mainly Syrians, have crossed into Syria from Lebanon in the past 72 hours, the UN refugee agency said on Friday, amid an escalating conflict between Israeli forces and the heavily armed Hezbollah that has left hundreds dead in Lebanon.

Israeli forces carrying out in West Bank's Balata camp

Israeli forces are carrying out a raid on the Balata refugee camp east of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian media media has reported.

Gunfire and explosions were heard from the camp, according to the Wafa news agency.

Houthi leader says Israeli offensive in Lebanon 'would fail'

Houthi leader Abdulmalek al-Houthi has warned that any Israeli ground operation into Lebanon would be doomed to fail.

In a speech aired yesterday on the rebel group's Al-Masirah TV, he said that he would "not hesitate" to support Lebanon and Hezbollah.

The rebel leader condemned Israel's recent heavy strikes on Lebanon, accusing them of deliberately targeting civilians, including women and children, and homes.

"The enemy's foolishness in Lebanon will lead it to great loss on the path to its final downfall," al-Houthi said.

The Israeli military announced late yesterday that it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen.

Iraq's Islamic Resistance claims attacks on Golan Heights

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) group has claimed new drone attacks against the Israeli occupied Golan Heights. 

The group posted three different Telegram statements early this morning. One claimed a drone attack on Golan, another claimed an attack using an al-Arqab cruise missile on a "vital target" in the occupied territory and a third statement claimed another drone attack on Golan.

IRI also posted two videos showing what it said were the launching of the drones.

The group said in each statement that the attacks came "in support of our people in Gaza, and in response to the massacres the usurper entity [Israel] commits against civilians".

Netanyahu distances himself from ceasefire talks

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said this morning in an English statement on X that Israel and the US have a "shared goal of returning people safely to their homes". 

Netanyahu's comment comes after he had earlier denied reports of involvement in talks for a temporary ceasefire in the escalating cross-border fighting with the Lebanese group Hezbollah.

A Hebrew statement from the prime minister's office yesterday said that "the report about a ceasefire is incorrect", referring to a US-French initiative backed by allies.

Israeli media later reported that US officials had said they coordinated ceasefire plans with Netanyahu prior to them being announced and believed Israel was on board.

Filipinos to be evacuated from Lebanon if Israel invades

The Philippines said on Friday it will evacuate 11,000 citizens from Lebanon the moment Israeli forces cross the border to launch a ground offensive against Hezbollah.

"A ground invasion will lead to mandatory repatriation," Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said at a press conference in Manila, adding the plan was to move thousands out of the country via the sea.

He did not provide other details.

Manila had earlier urged Filipinos to leave Lebanon before airlines stopped flying to Beirut but most of its citizens did not heed the call, Filipino diplomats said.

Millions of Filipinos work overseas - with large numbers concentrated in the Middle East - due to limited job opportunities at home. Around 90 percent of those working in Lebanon are women migrant domestic workers.

"To some of them, getting killed in war is preferable to starving to death," de Vega said, adding there have so far been no Filipino casualties from the Israeli air campaign against Hezbollah.

Hezbollah says fired rocket salvo at Israel's Tiberias

Lebanon's Hezbollah group said its forces fired a salvo of rockets at the Israeli city of Tiberias on Friday.

In a statement, Hezbollah said it was responding to Israel's "savage" strikes on Lebanese towns and civilians. The Israeli military said drones and projectiles had crossed its territory from Lebanon.

Starmer discussed importance of a ceasefire with Mikati

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met his Lebanese counterpart at the United Nations and discussed the importance of an immediate ceasefire and a negotiated solution in the conflict with Israel, his office said on Friday.

Starmer met Lebanon's Najib Mikati at the United Nations General Assembly.

"The Prime Minister opened by giving his sincere condolences to Prime Minister Mikati for the loss of civilian life in recent weeks," the statement said.

"They discussed the escalating conflict in Lebanon, and agreed on the importance of an immediate ceasefire and a negotiated solution."

Japan urges citizens to leave Lebanon

Tokyo is urging its citizens to leave Lebanon, Japan's top government spokesman said Friday, with media reporting plans are afoot to dispatch military aircraft to evacuate them.

Israeli bombing has killed hundreds of people this week in Lebanon, particularly in Hezbollah strongholds while the militant group has retaliated with rocket barrages.

"We're currently checking the safety of Japanese citizens living in Lebanon, as well as urging them to leave the country while regular commercial flights remain in operation", chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Friday.

Meanwhile, Japanese media reported that arrangements are currently underway for the government to send military aircraft to Jordan where they will be on stand-by.

The C-2 transport aircraft will be mobilised to evacuate around 50 Japanese citizens currently in Lebanon, media outlets including Kyodo News said, citing unnamed government sources.

Yoko Kamikawa, Japan's foreign minister, said Wednesday that Tokyo is "strongly concerned about the escalation of tensions between Israel and Hezbollah."

Japan, she added, "strongly urges" all parties to "exercise the utmost restraint to avoid further escalation."

5 Syrian soldiers on Lebanon border by Israeli strike

An Israeli air strike on Friday killed five Syrian soldiers near the border with Lebanon, the official news agency SANA reported, citing a military source.

"The Israeli enemy carried out an aerial attack... on one of our military positions near Kfar Yabus on the Syrian-Lebanese border," SANA said, adding that five Syrian soldiers were killed and one was wounded.

Israel strike kills 9 from same family in Lebanon's Shebaa

An Israeli strike at around 3 a.m. on Friday killed nine people from the same family in the southern Lebanese border-town of Shebaa, including four children, mayor Mohammad Saab told Reuters.