Jerusalem, Nov 8: Lebanon’s Civil Defence service says they have pulled 30 bodies from the rubble of an apartment building that Israel struck the night before. Search efforts were ongoing on Wednesday, and it was unclear how many survivors or bodies were still trapped under the rubble.The airstrike Tuesday night came without warning. There was no statement from the Israeli military on the strike, and it was not immediately clear what the intended target was.
On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in a surprise announcement that sparked protests across the country. Gallant’s replacement is Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a longtime Netanyahu loyalist and veteran Cabinet minister.
While Netanyahu has called for continued military pressure on Hamas, Gallant said military force created the necessary conditions for at least a temporary diplomatic deal that could bring home hostages held by the militant group.
The Israel-Hamas war began after Palestinian militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people ā mostly civilians ā and abducting 250 others. Israel’s military response in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 people, Palestinian health officials say. They do not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of those killed were women and children.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah erupted in 2023, at least 3,000 people have been killed and some 13,500 wounded in Lebanon, the Health Ministry reported. A report by Lebanon’s crisis response unit said 361,300 Syrians and over 177,800 Lebanese crossed into Syria between September 23 and November 1.