International

Hezbollah leader’s death won’t go unavenged, says Iran

Published

6 hours ago

September 29, 2024

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described Hassan Nasrallah as -a path and a school of thought-

Hezbollah leader’s death won’t go unavenged, says Iran

Iran’s supreme leader has said the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah “will not go unavenged”, a day after he was killed in an Israeli air strike in Lebanon.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced five days of mourning in Iran in response to what he called the “martyrdom of the great Nasrallah”, describing him as “a path and a school of thought” that would continue.

Iranian media reported that a Iranian Revolutionary Guards general was also killed in the Israeli strikes in Beirut on Friday.

Israel’s military said Nasrallah had “the blood of thousands… on his hands”, and that it targeted him while he was “commanding more imminent attacks”.

There are fears that the strike could plunge the wider region into war, after nearly a year of cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah sparked by the 7 October attacks and war in the Gaza Strip.

Key to what happens next in the Middle East is what Ayatollah Khamenei decides.

So far, he and other senior Iranian figures have refrained from vowing to retaliate for the series of severe and humiliating blows that Israel has dealt Hezbollah in recent weeks, seemingly because Iran does not want a war with its arch-enemy.

Iran also has not carried out its threat to avenge the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July, which Iran and Hamas blamed on Israel.

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Both Hezbollah and Hamas are designated as terrorist organisations by Israel, the US, UK and other countries.

Earlier on Saturday, Ayatollah Khamenei urged Muslims to stand by Hezbollah “with their resources and help” but did not promise to retaliate for the strike that killed Nasrallah.

“The fate of this region will be determined by the forces of resistance, with Hezbollah at the forefront,” he said.

Reuters news agency meanwhile cited two regional officials as saying that the supreme leader had been transferred to a secure location inside Iran with heightened security measures. They also said Iran was in constant contact with Hezbollah and other allies to determine their next steps, according to the report.

Friday’s Israeli strike levelled several buildings in Beirut’s southern suburb of Dahieh, underneath which the Israeli military said Hezbollah’s central headquarters was located.

Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah’s death on Saturday. But it did not comment on the Israeli military’s claim that Ali Karaki, the head of the group’s Southern Front, and other commanders were killed alongside Nasrallah.

Gen Abbas Nilforoushan, deputy commander of operations for Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), was also “martyred” in Dahiyeh on Friday, according to the IRGC-linked Saberin News outlet.

It provided nor further details, although the moderate Didban news website said he was “assassinated along with” Nasrallah.

However, there has been no official confirmation from Iranian authorities.

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Iran uses the IRGC to provide Hezbollah with most of its funding, training and weapons, which have allowed the Shia Islamist group to build a military wing stronger than the Lebanese army.

The US says the IRGC also oversees the co-ordination of Iran’s network of allied armed groups across the Middle East, which are all opposed to the US and Israel and sometimes refer to themselves as the “Axis of Resistance”. Besides Hezbollah, they include Hamas, the Houthis in Yemen and Shia militias in Iraq and Syria.

On Saturday, there were air raid sirens in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv after the Houthis launched a missile in support of Hezbollah. The Israeli military said the missile was intercepted.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iraqi militias, also claimed new drone attacks on northern Israel and the occupied Golan Heights.

Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East programme at the UK-based think tank Chatham House, said Iran’s reputation among its allies was “certainly damaged” and that it would be “looking for some way to turn the tables and save some face”.

“This could result in a co-ordinated axis response, including from Iraq and the Houthis, or another direct Iranian strike on Israel itself,” she said.

“By maintaining pressure or even escalating, Tehran is aware that this will invite further attacks, but it will choose to do so keep pressure on Israel.”

Hezbollah leader’s death won’t go unavenged, says Iran

BBC

International

Israel bombs Yemeni port, power stations after Houthi attacks

Published

1 hour ago

September 29, 2024

Trends Admin

Israel bombs Yemeni port, power stations after Houthi attacks

Houthi followers brandish Lebanon’s Hezbollah flags during a protest against the Israeli aerial attacks on Lebanon, on Sept. 27, in Sana’a, Yemen. Photographer: Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images

Israeli fighter jets bombed a seaport and several power stations in Yemen, its military said Sunday, following a string of attacks this month on central Israel by Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

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The strikes in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah and in Ras Issa targeted oil infrastructure, the Israeli army said in a statement. There was no immediate word on any casualties.

Israel bombs Yemeni port, power stations after Houthi attacks

International

Fire triggers partial collapse of Jeddah International Market building facade

Published

6 hours ago

September 29, 2024

Trends Admin

Fire triggers partial collapse of Jeddah International Market building facade

JEDDAH: A fire broke out early Sunday morning at the Jeddah International Market building in the Al Rawdah district, causing the partial collapse of the building’s facade, Al Arabiya news channel reported.

Local authorities and emergency services were quickly on the scene to contain the fire and ensure the safety of nearby residents and businesses. There have been no immediate reports of casualties.

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The Jeddah International Market is a well-known commercial

Fire triggers partial collapse of Jeddah International Market building facade

ARAB NEWS

International

Saudi condemns Israelis attack on ‘defenseless’ Palestinians

Published

13 hours ago

September 29, 2024

Trends Admin

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan

Saudi condemns Israelis attack on ‘defenseless’ Palestinians

CHICAGO: Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister on Saturday condemned Israel’s “crimes” and “barbaric practices” against “defenseless civilians” in the Gaza Strip during his speech to the UN General Assembly.

Prince Faisal bin Farhan accused Israel of creating a “real humanitarian catastrophe” that is “continuing to get worse.”

He lauded the recent International Court of Justice advisory opinion that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem is illegal under international and humanitarian law.

Prince Faisal urged the UN to recognize Palestine as a full member, saying: “We welcome the adoption by the General Assembly on May 10, 2024, of a resolution that states that the state of Palestine fulfills all the conditions to become a fully fledged member state of our organization, and we welcome the decision of Norway, Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and Armenia, who have recognized the brotherly country of Palestine.”

He added: “We call upon other states to bilaterally recognize the state of Palestine, and to act together in order to recognize the state of Palestine as an independent state.”

Israel’s actions continue despite Saudi efforts to “stop the bloodshed, to ensure unhindered humanitarian access, and to realize the legitimate demands of the Palestinian people,” including an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, Prince Faisal said.

“We categorically reject all crimes perpetrated by Israel against the kindred Palestinian people. The most recent crimes committed against civilians, defenseless civilians, is just one chapter in the story of suffering by this brotherly people who have been suffering for decades now,” he added.

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Israel’s “barbaric” practices since last year have “cost the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, in particular women and children,” he said.

“We’re seeing bombing, murder and destruction. This is a real humanitarian catastrophe and it’s continuing to get worse. It’s necessary to halt this aggression.”

Saudi Arabia has provided $5 billion to the people of Gaza in the past year, and is working with different UN agencies to raise a total of $106 billion for reconstruction and humanitarian aid, Prince Faisal said.

The Kingdom is working with UN ministerial committees, Norway and the EU to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians on the basis of the two-state solution, he added.

Saudi Arabia is also working to “fight against the financing of terrorism” by cooperating with international partners, he said.

The Kingdom is working to bring peace to the region by resuming relations with Syria, pushing to resolve the Yemen crisis, and striving for peace and stability in Sudan, Prince Faisal said, adding that his country is preparing to host the third round of Sudanese peace talks in Jeddah.

Saudi Arabia has restored diplomatic relations with Iran “based on the respect of sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs, and also on respect of the UN Charter,” he said.

“We hope that Iran will cooperate with the international community, in particular vis-a-vis its nuclear program and its ballistic missile program.”

A priority for Saudi Arabia is to continue to “fulfill the needs of future generations, to empower women and youth, and to build bridges with the world,” Prince Faisal said, adding that the Kingdom is addressing major world issues such as climate change.

Last September, Saudi Arabia created an international organization to address water resource challenges, he said.

The Kingdom, which was chosen to host Expo 2030, will use the forum “to focus on the (UN’s) Sustainable Development Goals,” Prince Faisal said, adding that the event is “an opportunity to find political solutions when it comes to sustainability, and also to honor our commitments to developing countries.”

He said: “We hope that the efforts being made will enable us to establish a common principle with mutual respect to build a better future for the whole of humanity.”